


Atlas Shrouded

by grimscribbler



Category: RWBY
Genre: Action/Adventure, F/F, F/M, Falling In Love, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Post-Canon, Realization, Slow Burn, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-21
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2020-05-12 22:26:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 18
Words: 45,354
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19238329
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grimscribbler/pseuds/grimscribbler
Summary: Finally stepping foot in Atlas, the pressure is on for RWBY and ORNJ to find the Winter Maiden, and open the vault located within the Atlas Academy walls. Between the team dynamics shifting and Atlas throwing everything it has at them, their only hope is to trust in each other.For without trust... how do you save the world?(Basically my crazy cork board theories about Volume 7 thrown into a fic, garnished with my gay heart's desires)





	1. maybe red's like roses

**Author's Note:**

> WELP this is a thing. 
> 
> So RWBY has my entire heart and soul, and I really wanted to participate for Whiterose week, so I shat this out in two hours.
> 
> The idea for this I've had for Months now, but I haven't been able to find my writing voice for a hot second and then this happened. Hope it's okay, comments and kudos much appreciated!

Atlas was unlike anything Ruby had ever seen. 

  
A city floating among pale clouds and stars, trolleys zooming along highways that arched from its buildings like the spectral lines of an atom. As peaceful as the night seemed, nothing could shake the foreboding air as the army of frigates and planes circled silver towers like vultures.

  
Ruby hated it.

  
In every blink, she had flashes of memories. Moments during the Fall of Beacon as the airships rammed into each other, groaning against the air as they fell to Vale below. Her grip on the back of Qrow's seat tightened as her silver eyes locked on the craggy cliffs of Atlas.

  
The landing strip came into view with clouds clinging to its surface, strings of red lights beckoning them down to the edge. 

  
"So... They'll probably have a few questions when we land." Jaune said tiredly, rubbing one of his eyes as he leaned against the side of the ship. 

  
"You mean they won't be thrilled we brought their airship back to them?" Blake asked sarcastically, her voice quiet as Yang's head dipped towards her collarbone. Soft snores rose from their little corner, muffled by a curtain of threaded gold.

  
" _Stolen,_ airship." Weiss said absently, frowning at the flock of ships looming closer to their horizon. 

  
"We'll think of something," Ruby said, attempting a nervous grin. 

  
There was a nervous thrum in the air between their teams, an uneasy silence falling over them. 

  
Ruby fidgeted in place, noticing Weiss wrap her arms around herself loosely. The ex-heiress seemed to debate something, before breaking the silence with soft words. "I have an idea."

  
She seemed reluctant to pose it, but did so with a regal air. "We could...say... that I hired a band of skilled Hunters and Huntresses to escort me home. Argus was attacked by a Leviathan, and you took a plane to get me to safety. It holds some validity."

  
Ruby shook her head quickly, something twisting unpleasantly in her chest. "What? Weiss that's -"

  
"I'm aware of the implications. And… the potential consequences. But it's the most logical step. My name only carries weight if I'm a lost object. You all saw it with Cordovin - we could use it to get safe passage."

  
"...Weiss, we're not turning you over to your father just to stay in Atlas." Blake said, her grip on Yang's metal hand tightening.

  
"There's no way." Jaune chimed in, Ren nodding firmly in assent.

  
Nora suddenly hefted her hammer up to point at Weiss, the pale girl startling backwards.

  
"I can break _so_ many legs," Nora promised darkly, pearly white teeth gleaming in a bared grin.

  
Oscar laughed a little nervously. "She's not serious...right?"

  
"You can never know for sure." Ren replied fondly, gently pulling the orange haired girl back towards him and Jaune.

  
Weiss huffed quietly, though she gave Nora a begrudging smile. 

  
"If no one has a better idea, I'm going to land this thing before we run out of fuel." Maria said from the front, reaching over to the passenger side with her cane. "Wake up lazy feathers!"

  
The resounding _whack_ and coughing smoker's lungs made the entire airship wince in sympathy. Ruby stifled a laugh as Qrow unfurled from his contorted bundle of torn cloak and long legs, rubbing his shoulder with a disgruntled scowl.

  
“You need to hide the relic.” He said gruffly, turning to the rest of the ship. “I know Ironwood wasn't intentionally a part of the Fall, but I still don't trust his judgement. I don’t trust any of Ozpin’s circle after Lionheart.”

  
Ruby's hand rested on the cool metal of the lamp, its power pulsing a familiar tattoo against her hip. She was hesitant to move it, but she knew it was probably for the best. A giant blue lamp dangling from her belt was far too conspicuous for a military base.

  
“Here, we can wrap it in my clothes.” Weiss offered, reaching up to pull her suitcase from the netted overhang.

  
Arms unexpectedly weak, Weiss stumbled pulling it down, nearly dropping it. A rush of rose petals swept past her nose as Ruby caught her luggage, carefully helping her lower it to the floor. 

  
“You okay Weiss?” Ruby asked quietly, the pale girl staring at her trembling hands.

  
“Y-yeah. I think I'm just… a little more tired than I thought.” She said in a whisper.

  
Ruby hesitated, looking over her partner with worry. She seemed more than tired, her pale throat bobbing with a dry swallow as she pulled her thin fingers into fists. Ruby reached over impulsively, barely even thinking as she clasped their hands together. Her hands were so cold compared to Ruby's that she instinctively rubbed them to give some warmth back.

  
"It's gonna be okay, Weiss." She said softly, a few strands of crimson tips dangling over her earnest gaze.

  
The wrinkle between pale eyebrows smoothed out, a small, hesitant smile lifting her pink lips. She didn't respond, but something told Ruby that she was in better spirits already. She slowly matched her smile, warmth flooding her chest at the sight. It still gave her thrills when Weiss’ cold exterior washed away with her smile, remembering all too well how difficult it was to gain that trust in the first place.

  
An explosive sneeze snapped them out of the moment, spooking nearly everyone the ship at once. Jaune grinned sheepishly at his friends, cowering a bit under Blake's withering gold glare; Yang miraculously still passed out and curled into her side.

  
“Sorry. It’s cold in here.”

  
Weiss huffed, rolling her eyes as she took her hands from Ruby and dipped down to her suitcase. “Come on, the sooner we hide the relic, the sooner we can land and sleep.”

  
Ruby flexed her tingling hands, shaking herself from thoughts of her partner. She unhooked the lamp from her belt, taking a moment to brush her thumb along the gilded edges and pulsing blue glass.

  
“We’ll keep you safe, Jinn.” She murmured under her breath, handing the lamp to Weiss. 

  
The heiress wrapped it in the fluffy folds of her spare combat dress, the suitcase clicking shut with finality. The light of the relic was smothered and safe, but Ruby felt a little naked without its weight at her hip.

  
“Atlas Airspace this is Manta-five one, we’re coming in for a landing, over.” Qrow said in a gravelly drawl, the entire ship banking to the left as Maria steered them towards the flickering red lights.

  
“That's a copy, you are clear for landing on strip nine.” The operator replied with a crackle of static.

  
The operator’s voice had startled Yang awake, her blonde head popping up from Blake’s shoulder with a snort. “M’up, m’not sleepin’.”

  
Blake suppressed a laugh, squeezing Yang’s metal hand just enough to draw her partner’s attention. “We’re about to dock.”

  
Bleary lilac eyes skipped over Blake’s face until they shifted to her gold eyes, meeting them as if drawn by a magnet. A lazy grin spread across the blonde’s face and Blake’s cat ears flicked in amusement.

  
Yang’s voice came from her chest in a clear rasp. “Cool cool… You guys think we’ll have to fight anyone when they realise we're not military?”

  
“I hope not!” Jaune groaned, heaving himself to his feet. “I’m completely out of aura guys, I don’t think I could fight anything right now.”

  
“Same.” Weiss chime in to the surprise of her teammates. She gave a dismissive shrug. “I summoned two huge constructs today, I’m really…” A wince. “...Tired.”

  
Ruby let out an uncomfortable laugh, swinging her hands by her sides. “W-well uh… we should be fine! Right Uncle Qrow?”

  
A pair of tired pale red eyes peaked at the group from over his seat. “I'm gonna be honest with ya kiddo. Ironwood isn't my biggest fan.”

  
The teens all stared at him, dread sinking into their stomachs.

  
“Lovin’ the odds here.” Nora said sarcastically, hopping to her feet as the airship swept over the proper air strip.

  
“Let’s just take it one step at a time.” Blake said softly, helping Yang to her feet.

  
A blast of cold air howled as it battered the side of their ship and jerked them slightly off course and waking Oscar with a start.

  
“Wh-what’s - what’s happening?” Oscar yelped, looking around frantically as Maria struggled with the controls.

  
“The winds aren’t too happy with us!” Maria said flatly, her blue goggles narrowing.

  
The ships rocked once more, the wind picking up speed as she maneuvered them over the tarmac.

  
Weiss grasped the back of Ruby’s hood as she stumbled, Yang and Blake remaining steadfast in their footing as they leaned on one another. Jaune scooted back to brace against the wall, his arm held across Oscar’s chest to keep him in place.

  
“Maria!” Weiss yelped.

  
Nora stumbled with the major tilt of the plane, laughing and spinning around as she danced through the bay and avoided the walls. Ren shook his head at her, hanging off to the side with one of his green knives embedded in the floor to keep himself in place.

  
Up front Maria grunted, slapping away Qrow’s hand as he tried to help her with the controls. “Go away, I’ve kept us alive this long you think I’d kill us now?!”

  
She reached down and pulled a lever by her dangling foot, and the plane suddenly stabilized. The jets quieted as it settled gently on the ground, the silence after chaos oddly still.

  
She gave a self satisfied grin to her passengers, tilting her chin up. One of her eyes spun and corrected itself, fixating on Qrow’s incredulous, ruffled feathered look. “And _that’s_ how it’s done.”

  
Maria's small form slipped out of the cockpit, skull tipped cane tapping against the floor. She gestured to the bay doors.

  
“So who’s first?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well for everyone new, welcome to my insane little project! I've never really dedicated to a fanfiction before, but every time that I feel like I'm gonna give up on it, I reread some of the chapters and more words are pulled out of me - it's so fuckin wild guys :D I love this community, I love all of the comments you guys have given me. I'm so honored to be a part of RWBY's community, and to be able to tell this story to y'all, so thank you for all of your kindness and support!
> 
> Just a sweet little message, because y'all have blown me away with your support and kudos, so thank you <3


	2. the cold seems to grow in my soul

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look there's more :D
> 
> I want to thank everyone who took the time to comment on my fic so far, and everyone who left a kudos too! I really appreciate every single one of them, they make me feel warm and fuzzy <3 Granted I'm making this fic purely for myself, but knowing that other people enjoy it just really makes writing feel more worthwhile :D
> 
> I pulled another all-nighter to finish this chapter, so I'm sorry if it jumps in places lolol

* * *

 

The biting cold winds of Atlas were a familiar sting. Weiss remembered how it would seep into the walls of Schnee Manor, the polished floors reflecting like iced roads. 

 

She'd grown up with it, the cold and disappointment. She'd never known anything else.

 

Vale had taught her warmth. She'd been forced to adjust to her new life and friends. It was hard at first, but eventually her very soul began to melt in their presence. A frozen heart thawed by the unique kind of love team RWBY shared at Beacon. 

 

They'd lost some of that ease during their time apart. 

 

She wasn't happy about returning to Atlas a second time. After running away to prove a point - to come back tasted bitter. Voluntarily giving up the warmth she'd desperately been trying to get back since Yang found her in the bandit camp. Offhandedly, she wondered if the chill in her fingers was a subtle threat - a reminder that nothing in Atlas was warm.

 

But then Ruby would say something, and Yang would laugh, leaning into Blake's side. Blake would have that odd half smile, one that reminded Weiss of a painting she'd seen once. Ruby's smile would light up the room, her endless positivity seeping into Weiss' skin like a balm.

 

And suddenly she could breathe easier.

 

Even lying to an Atlas soldier couldn't chase away the heat of Ruby at her side. The power behind her as Yang loomed over her shoulder, Blake lingering in the shadows of their ship like a wraith. Weiss raised her hands in a show of surrender. Her chin was tilted up, long silvery hair whipping about in the high winds. Frost formed on the edges of her eyelashes, but there was nary a shiver to be seen. 

 

The cold was nothing to her.

 

"My name is Weiss Schnee, heir - ehem, former heiress to the Schnee Dust Company." She said firmly, cool blue eyes unphased by the guns pointed at them. "You may know my sister, Specialist Winter Schnee."

 

"..." The soldiers exchanged uneasy looks, a few of them slowly dropping their guns to their sides. The remaining looked to their commander, the armored faceplate reflecting emotionlessly at their group.

 

"...And the rest of them?" He asked, gesturing behind her to everyone.

 

"Hunters and Huntresses - they escorted me here from Argus. A Leviathan attacked the city and we were forced to take a ship from the military base to escape."  Weiss said evenly, noticing that Ruby seemed distracted, looking up at the cliffs and airships zooming around outside the dock. There was a deep frown set on her face.

 

"...They helped me arrive safely." She finished, shoving her worry to the side for now.

 

"..." The commander finally dropped his gun to his side, straightening up and saluting. "Very well, Ms. Schnee. We'll arrange for your father to come pick you up -"

 

"W-wait!" Ruby blurted out, snapping out of her distraction. She stepped forward, rubbing her arms furiously just to get some warmth back in her body. Hunched and shivering with her knees knocking together, she sure gave the soldiers a fright. "W-we can escort her - I mean, we g-g-got her this far, r-right?"

 

The soldiers glanced at each other, armor clinking as one of them gave a shrug. 

 

"I… I’m sorry Miss Schnee, I can’t let this many people into Atlas. One or two, maybe. But nine? We are technically a closed kingdom, the amount of red tape I would need to jump thro- "

 

"Sir, I'm aware of the amount of people with me." Weiss interjected, panic writhing under her skin. Her mind was racing, latching onto the only excuse she could think of. 

 

She sighed, rubbing her temple to make a show of it. "Unfortunately my father also had the fantastic foresight to send someone after me. Half of these people are hunters from Atlas, sent to fetch me from Mistral. The others I met along the way, and I promised them payment at Schnee Manor. They’re all waiting for payment at the manor, as I was robbed in Mistral." 

 

She pressed her lips together in a thin line, saying softly so the other soldiers couldn't hear her over the wind. "And I assure you, it's much better to have more Hunters and Huntresses  _ in _ Atlas, than outside." 

 

She glanced up as a rather large frigate rumbled past the docks, its proximity blowing freezing cold air into their faces. 

 

"Especially if those ships are meant to do anything besides float." Cool blue eyes flicked back to the commander. The small strip of skin revealing his jawline under the helmet had grown a bit pale, a muscle twitching near the bone.

 

"I...suppose I can work around it." He said finally, holstering his weapon. The others behind him followed suit, and Weiss barely contained her sigh of relief. "I'll escort you off the base, Miss Schnee, but that is as far as I can take you."

 

"That would be wonderful, thank you.” Weiss replied, the tension uncoiling from her spine. 

 

The commander seemed surprised with her response, as if he’d never been thanked by a Schnee before. Which, in hindsight, was probably fairly accurate. 

 

Weiss glanced back at her friends. Ren, Jaune, and Oscar's lips were starting to turn blue, but Nora seemed just fine. They huddled up to her like a group of penguins. Qrow had lent Maria his tattered red cape, the pair seemingly trying to withstand the cold out of sheer spite for Atlas. Ruby and Blake were clinging to Yang for dear life, the blonde's skin literally steaming in the cold as her hair fluttered like flames behind her. 

 

The blonde gave her a wink and a thumbs up, to which Weiss rolled her eyes. 

 

"Come on, he'll take us off the base." Weiss said as the lower ranked soldiers saluted to their commander and marched off. 

 

He turned to face them, gesturing for them to follow. "This way."

 

Weiss grabbed her suitcase as the groups shuffled forth, though Weiss hung back a bit more to catch some of Yang's heat. The cold was finally starting to make her nose run. She sniffed daintily, catching the smell of campfires and gunpowder from Yang's clothes. A hint of bergamot tea and roses sweetening the dry taste in the back of her mouth as Blake huddled close by, Ruby practically clinging to Yang like a koala. 

 

The military base was crammed into the side of the cliffs, just beneath the flat layer that Atlas's townships and cities were built upon. The tarmac stretched out in several long runways for ships to take off, the ends dropping off into nothingness in the most unsettling way. 

 

"I've n-never seen s-s-so much dust in use b-before…" Jaune said, voice cracking at Weiss' left. Each runway was lit by glowing red crystals of dust, wavering heat emanating from their light.

 

"As raw fire dust, they give off so much heat naturally that the frost can't freeze entirely on the strip. It allows planes the ability to take off without sliding on patches of ice." Weiss explained, remembering a simpler time when Winter had taught her about the uses of dust in Atlas.

 

“One of the border towns has a trolley station you can use to get further into Atlas.” The commander said faintly from the front.

 

They approached a metal shaft embedded into the rock face, a set of glossy metal doors gleaming at the base. Weiss slowed her walk a bit, the rest of her friends following suit. 

 

“Thank you. There was something else I wanted to ask,” Weiss said, giving a cursory look to her friends. “Do you know how we can get in touch with General Ironwood..? My family has been his confidant for years, and I would like to tell him of the events in Argus.” 

 

He snorted, bending down to punch a code into the transparent keypad beside the door. “Good luck. The General’s been holed up in his school since the borders were closed. No one’s spoken to him directly in weeks.”

 

Qrow growled softly, muttering something under his breath. Weiss bit her lip, falling quiet as the doors slid open with a soft  _ shhh _ .

 

The  commander saluted to Weiss, gesturing to the open doors. “Sorry I couldn’t be of more help, miss.”

 

“It’s alright, thank you for your assistance thus far.” Weiss gave him a small smile, nodding in thanks.

 

Jaune and Oscar were the first to make a beeline for the elevator, both of them shivering like they’d never be warm again. Maria was close behind, fiddling with her eye piece as the blue lights flickered here and there. Nora skipped in, humming happily as Ren stuck to her warm side like glue. Yang practically carried Ruby and Blake into the elevator, followed by a sulking and irritated Qrow. 

 

With Yang’s heat seeping from her skin, the entire group unconsciously clustered together around her. She didn’t seem to mind, laughing at something Blake was whispering to her. Weiss took a moment to look them over, her nerves settling slowly in her stomach.

 

This was her family, her home. Things may not have gone their way completely, but with her friends here… Something told her she’d be okay.  _ They _ would be okay.

 

“Are you coming, Weiss?" Ruby asked, peaking over her taller sister’s shoulder, silver eyes gleaming brighter than the polished walls.

 

She gave into the smile growing on her face.

 

“Yes, sorry."

 

The ride was surprisingly short for an elevator traveling through tons and tons of rock and ice. Weiss leached as much heat from the ride as possible. She hadn’t realized how cold she was until she felt the tips of her fingers start to defrost. 

 

Their ride shuddered, Weiss’ spine compressing just enough to notice as they heaved to a slow stop. She heard Ruby and Nora giggling tiredly at the odd feeling. 

 

The doors slid open, and Atlas expanded in front of them in all of its immense beauty. 

 

The central city was glorious in the moonlight, impossibly tall towers rising with the mountainscape behind it, eclipsing the snowcaps in height. Fragments of the crumbling moon were reflected so cleanly in the tower's blue glass that they could see it from miles away. Starlight should have bathed it in glittering blankets, but there were far too many airships weaving through the air above. They blotted out the stars, ruining the shining reflections with their ugly metal bodies.

 

Weiss wondered if the city was holding its breath. Like a child hiding under the covers, afraid to sleep. 

 

Her attention shifted to the small plots of towns that circled the towers, rural areas that held their own small ecosystems outside of Atlas’ gleaming high rises. Weiss had only been to maybe one or two in her lifetime, once to visit a lesser known company man with her grandfather, and another when Winter decided to show her the parts of Atlas she was missing. 

 

One of the smaller outer cities was laid out amongst the gray blue rock, thin towers only reaching a fraction of the main city's height. It was fairly close, not too far of a walk along the beaten path. Exhaustion had settled over her group in the elevator, not a word spoken between them as they began their walk into the outskirts of Atlas. They huddled in their groups, thankfully encountering less freezing temperatures as they weren’t on a literal cliff anymore. 

 

It’d been a unanimous decision to find a hotel for the night. If anything, Maria’s silence was telling of the collective exhaustion they suffered. 

 

It wasn’t hard to find a hotel near the trolley station. They booked three rooms with what little cash they had left, and the teams split accordingly. Maria and Qrow were forced to take a room together. Maria had stated quite firmly that she needed her own bed, and Qrow - still wary of the sassy old woman - didn't find it fit to argue.

 

Team RWBY had ordered some food and sat down in their hotel room, which was rather extravagant if Weiss was being honest. Perhaps she’d gotten used to sleeping where she could.

 

Their double bed hotel room came with a living room and kitchenette. Plus two fully functioning bathrooms attached to separate single bed rooms. It all seemed a little… too much. 

 

However, after a moment of defrosting her fingers and ears, Weiss’s thoughts turned to how  _ gross _ she felt. A shower was in order, and Yang was right with her on that. 

 

Weiss found herself spacing out into the steam. The silent sigh of 'we made it' caused her bones to drag with every motion, exhaustion hitting her like a train crash. 

 

She’d spent nearly an hour in the water, furiously rubbing the ocean salt and grime from her white locks and pale skin. She emerged with bright pink skin and her hair pulled up into a towel as white as her hair, body wrapped in another. 

 

Ruby was already lying on their shared bed with her eyes closed, her corset unlaced and tossed aside haphazardly. The dirty white shirt underneath untucked from her skirt halfway. One of her boots was unbuckled, the other only partially off her foot before she’d apparently given up.

 

Weiss huffed softly, shaking her head fondly. She walked over to her suitcase and pulled out a long blue shirt, giving the glowing lamp wrapped in one of her dirty dresses only a cursory glance. She quickly shuffled back into the bathroom to change. It felt a bit like Beacon again, darting in and out of their shared room for clothes or toiletries. 

 

She returned and gently shook Ruby awake at her shoulder, lips quirking in a smile as pretty pale gray eyes fluttered open, framed by long black eyelashes. Ruby blinked off kilter, stretching and rubbing an eye as she croaked softly, “Weiss..? How long was I out?”

 

An odd feeling arose in Weiss’ chest, lightheaded and thumping as if her heart was kicking at the bars of her ribs, trying to get free. She pulled back out of pure surprise, hand gripping the fabric over her chest. Ruby sat up more, worried by her reaction undoubtedly. “Weiss?”

 

“O-only an hour, I think.” Weiss said, a slight dizzy airiness seeping into her. She was thankful for the current fresh pinkness of her skin, a blush rising to her cheeks. “I think the food is here, do um, do you want me to keep it warm for you while you shower?”

 

“That’d be nice…” Ruby said, giving her a curious look. “You sure you’re okay?”

 

“Y-yes I’m fine. I think the water was too warm.” She said, baffled that her fluttering heart seemed completely out of control. Flustered, she began to back up. “I’ll see you out in the common area, enjoy your shower!”

 

She fled quickly, closing the door behind her with a stuttering inhale, pressing a hand to her forehead. “What in Remnant was that?” She muttered, combing pale hands through her fringe. 

 

“Interesting shower?” Blake asked, startling Weiss with her quiet presence.

 

The faunus was lounging at the table in a black and violet kimono. Her gold eyes were playful and intrigued, long inky black hair wet about her shoulders.

 

“Wh- no it was a perfectly normal shower!” Weiss frowned, her heart slowing. “...Though, I might have breathed in too much steam.”

 

“Is that so?” Blake grinned a bit, one of her ears flicking in amusement. 

 

“D-did you already take a shower?” Weiss asked, trying desperately to change the subject. She wandered over, drawn by the smell of food. “You’d think with the fuss Yang made, she’d want first dibs.”

 

“She told me to go first.” Blake replied easily, twirling one of her chopsticks between her fingers like a baton. Her casual air dropped a bit, stating quietly, “I think she’s still adjusting when it comes to showering around other people. Especially me, with her prosthetic and all.”

 

Weiss frowned, sitting across from her. “Is there still tension about that?”

 

“Well, yeah. Just because Addam’s gone doesn’t mean that everything gets to go back to the way it was.” Blake’s ears swiveled back on her head as she sighed, poking at the fish on her plate. “There’s still stuff we have to work through.”

 

Weiss frowned, nodding slowly. “That’s fair. But…” Burnished gold met sapphire blue. “You can work through it together, right?”

 

Blake blinked, her ears perking up. She tilted her head, studying Weiss for a moment, one of her mysterious small smiles lifting her lips. “...Yeah. We’re in it together this time.”

 

Weiss matched her smile as the door to Yang and Blake’s room swung open. Yang walked in with a bright grin, wearing a tank top and shorts, her ripped metal arm still in place. She slid into the seat beside Blake, shoulders bumping together. “I dunno about you guys but I feel much better.”

 

“Showers tend to do that.” Blake drawled, her smile stretching to crinkle the corners of her eyes. 

 

Yang’s grin softened to a warm smile, looking at her partner with a tender gleam.

 

Weiss suddenly had a feeling she was intruding on something. 

 

Before she could comment, Ruby slipped out of their room. She wore a black tank top and pale pink pj pants, designs of roses scattered over them. She had a few new scars over her shoulders that Weiss hadn’t seen before, which left her to wonder if Cordovin’s machine had done more than she let on. She seemed exhausted, eyes drifted to half mast as she shuffled over to them. 

 

“Food’s still warm Rubes.” Yang said, snapping out of her moment with Blake.

 

A bit more life entered Ruby’s body, her head perking up. “Oh awesome! Thanks for keepin’ it warm Weiss.”

 

The ex-heiress winced, trying to ignore the curious looks from her other teammates. “N-no problem.”

 

Silence fell over them as they turned their attention to their food, Weiss’ heart skipping once as Ruby sat next to her. Silverware and chopsticks clinked softly, somehow making it seem even quieter than it was.

 

Suddenly Ruby set her utensils down, drawing the rest of the table’s attention. She grinned crookedly, a sight that Weiss found inexplicably adorable more often than not. “Guys." 

 

Her grin grew wider, joy bursting at the edges of her aura. "We made it!" 

 

Yang snorted, Blake joining in with a soft laugh as Weiss rolled her eyes, obviously trying to suppress a smile. It only made Ruby’s grow twice its size. 

 

"I mean we almost died a couple of times, but we still made it!" She babbled on, "We’re in Atlas, one of the hardest places to get to in Remnant! That's - that’s  _ bonkers!” _

 

"We do seem to have luck on our side, for now." Blake said warmly.

 

Weiss couldn't help a small laugh, though she reluctantly admitted, “I suppose we can thank my father lobbying for my safe return, as we’d have been stuck in Mantle otherwise.”

 

“Do you know why he wants you back so badly? I thought you were disowned or something.” Yang asked.

 

“...I’m not entirely sure.” Weiss replied with a frown. “...He may have a hard time believing he can’t control me anymore. He’s used to my subordinance.”

 

“You’ve been defiant of that life since we met you, Weiss.” Blake chimed in encouragingly. “He’s never been able to completely break you.”

 

Weiss flushed a bit at the praise, not sure if she agreed with that statement. 

 

Ruby leaned suddenly into her shoulder, saying cheerfully, “And  _ we  _ won’t let him get close enough to try!”

 

The heiress rolled her eyes to cover up the way her pulse sputtered from their proximity. “..So you’ve said.” 

 

She pushed down the odd feeling as best she could, giving a soft sigh. “But thank you for the reassurance, all the same. It...helps.”

 

Yang and Ruby’s faces split into similar grins, their familial features identifiable in happiness. Blake’s smile was soft and welcoming, gaze made of liquid gold.

 

Then, her little black ears twitched, swiveling towards the door. The smile suddenly disappeared from Blake’s face. 

 

“Someone’s at the door.” She said lowly, “...I don’t recognize their steps.”

 

Yang stood up first, the small gun in her wrist activated as she stepped cautiously up to the door. She glanced back at them.

 

Ruby had grabbed Crescent Rose immediately from its resting place, gears cranking as it turned to its sniper form. She and Blake positioned themselves on either side of the table, Weiss grabbing her own weapon and holding the blade steady towards the door. She refused to show how fast her heart was pulsing in her throat, though she couldn't help the exhausted tremble in her hand. She gave a nod.

 

Yang returned it, reaching out and opening the door with crimson red eyes. 

 

Standing outside of their room was a boy no older than sixteen. Weiss would recognize that pristine white hair anywhere, meeting the eyes that had stolen her heritage.

 

Yang seemed to have an idea of who he was - there was only one family with such distinct features after all - but Weiss didn't speak of her brother much, if at all. Yang didn’t know what to do, her gauntlet cocked and ready as the door swung open the rest of the way. 

 

Weiss straightened up, a growl rising in her chest.

 

“Quite a welcoming party, dear sister.” Whitley purred, smirking.


	3. fool you shouldn't stare into these eyes of fire

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit guys over 100 kudos in two chapters??? I'm blown away, thank you so much T.T
> 
> I saw a bunch of you commenting on like, 'oh no not Shitley!' and I just wanna say, this chapter is for you and the bees <3
> 
> Comments and kudos are very much appreciated! Thank you guys <3

* * *

 

Whitley was...unimpressive. Yang decided she didn’t like him from the moment she’d opened the door, but his slimy, holier-than-thou attitude really ignited the fuse to her already limited patience. It was a violent throwback to Weiss in their first few months together, and Yang absolutely did _not_ miss it.

 

“You do know it’s rude to leave guests waiting outside.” Whitley said loftily, blue eyes flitting over Yang’s imposing figure, landing on her robotic hand with mild interest. 

 

Matte black and yellow fingers curled into the leather padding of her palm, Yang’s narrowed eyes gleaming like fresh blood in the dim hall light.

 

“I haven’t decided if you’re a guest or not.” She said slowly, glancing back at Weiss.

 

 As much as she didn't like the slimy twerp, it was Weiss who had the most sway in this. Her family, her decision. Yang would back her up either way.

 

"What do you want, Whitley." Weiss said more than asked, words cracking through the room like a whip.

 

The boy scoffed softly, reprimanding. "Is that any way to treat your family, sister?"

 

"I don't see Winter anywhere, so no, it isn't a concern of mine." 

 

Whitley, for all his composure and pomposity, seemed surprised that she'd bitten back. He wiped his expression soon after, but Yang took immense satisfaction seeing the cracks in his facade. Weiss had always had a sharp tongue, but recently she'd reigned herself in. Yang hadn't realised how much she'd missed her snark.

 

"Fine, if that's how it has to be. Father says you have three days to come home." Whitley scoffed, polishing his fingernails on his lapel. "Why he would ever let you walk the manor grounds again is beyond me, but I was overruled."

 

"Or what? He still hasn't realised that I'm an adult, and I can make my own decisions." Weiss sneered, the tip of her rapier digging deep into the carpet by her bare feet. 

 

Yang was glancing back and forth between them, an itch starting to form under her skin. She wanted to do something, namely giving Whitley something  _ real _ he could cry home to daddy for.

 

"He knows about your little friends." Whitley continued, unaware of the ticking time bomb in front of him. "If you don't cooperate, he said he'll have them arrested for kidnapping the former heiress to the Schnee Dust Company."

 

Yang heard a soft inhale of surprise from behind her, Weiss' face draining of color. The rest of the room was silent, until a subtle  _ click  _ pierced it. Yang recognized it immediately, countless hours of training with Ruby had embedded the sound into her memory. 

 

Ruby had taken the safety off, her rifle pointed unflinchingly between Whitley's wide blue eyes. The lithe muscles in her body were wound tighter than a drum, her eyes blazing with irritation.

 

"We can take care of ourselves, thanks." She said sharply, "You should tell your dad that he can't intimidate us away from Weiss. I don't care how powerful he is, we didn't come here for him. If Weiss doesn't want to go, then he'll have to get through all of us first."

 

"Ruby.." Weiss breathed, her breath hitching in her chest. 

 

Blake had shifted over to Weiss's side for solidarity, her upper lip curled to expose a singular canine in distaste. Yang smirked, shifting her weight to her hip as she crossed her arms, flexing her biceps for emphasis.

 

Whitley’s adam's apple bobbed in a dry swallow, his gaze locked on the gleaming red scope of Ruby’s gun. She may have just been a girl in a tank top and pj pants, but with steel in her eyes and a whole team to back her up, she could have easily been an army.

 

Weiss composed herself quickly, a hint of pride layering her words. “I believe we are done here. Tell father that I have no intention of setting foot back in that house. This life is  _ mine _ , and I will do with it as I please." 

 

Whitley’s expression flipped through several emotions, uncertainty twisting his mouth into a frown. It took everything in Yang's power not to end the conversation there by slamming the door in his face. She glanced back at her team, eyebrows raising as Whitley and Weiss became locked in a silent staring contest.

 

She met Blake’s eyes solidly, and for a heartbeat, it seemed like a sliver of purple shadow was whispering off the edges of her long black hair. Like flames made of darkness and beauty. Yang wasn’t sure if it was real.

 

In a blink the illusion was gone, and Weiss had stepped forward, snatching her roving attention.

 

“Whitley, father is just using you to keep the company. You’re smart, you know what he wants.” Weiss said softly, a desperate furrow in her brow. “You know what he expects -”

 

Whitley’s expression contorted into sudden rage, his calm exterior shattering as he rose his voice.

 

“He knows I won’t be a  _ failure _ like you and Winter!”

 

“Whitley -”

 

"This is only a warning! I don’t care if you come back, but if you drag the Schnee name through the mud while you are here in Atlas, father will see to it that you will  _ never  _ become a huntress!” He sneered. “Since that seems to be the only thing you care about!”

 

Weiss' pristine pale skin turned chalky white, her eyes growing wide. She tried to keep the mask up, though little cracks had begun to form. "Wait that’s not -"

 

"You’ll see the consequences, Weiss. Money travels. You can move with it," Whitley's gaze drifted over to Blake, lazily glancing up at her ears with a cruel grin, "Or be left behind to rot with the other  _ vermin  _ of society."

 

Yang had listened to enough of this conversation. Her well of patience had run dry, and that last jab at Blake sent war drums pounding in her ears. Weiss could yell at her later.

 

"If that’s everything, thanks for the message kid." She said flatly. Whitley's eyes widened a bit as the doorframe in her metal hand began to groan under the pressure. "Now kindly fuck off."

 

His mouth dropped open in silent outrage, but Yang slammed the door in his face. She closed her red eyes, taking a few calming breaths. A gentle hand pressed between her tight shoulder blades, the familiar smell of bergamot enveloping her. 

 

Faintly a weak fist pounded against the door, but it only lasted a moment as Jaune and Nora’s voices filled the hallway. Footsteps stomped away loudly without another word. 

 

Yang calmed, her lilac eyes drifting open to meet soft, burnished gold.  They shared a silent look of 'you okay?', auras humming between them quietly. Her gaze drifted up the drying locks cascading over Blake’s shoulders, noticing a small wisp of violet lifting from her skin. Blake didn’t seem to notice, her smile soft and magnetic. It took everything Yang had to look away, to focus on the situation at hand and not the electricity running rampant beneath her skin. 

 

Another soft knock tapped at their door. Yang growled softly but Blake gently pushed her back, opening the door with Gambol Shroud held loosely in her hand. Jaune and Nora stood in the doorway, both clad in their pajamas.

 

“Are you guys okay?” Jaune asked, glancing down the hall where Whitley had undoubtedly made a quick exit.

 

“Yeah,” Blake said coolly, “Just had an unexpected house call from an entitled twelve year old.”

 

“Oh, um… Should we talk about it?” Jaune asked, Oscar and Ren peering out from their open doorway across the hall.

 

Yang glanced back at Ruby and Weiss. Ruby was at the far window, watching the street with Crescent Rose still held against her chest. Weiss had sat back down at the table and dropped her head in her hands, her massive curtain of snow white hair dripping from her fingers like silk. She was very still.

 

“I think we can wait till tomorrow.” Yang said slowly. “I think we’re all too tired to deal with this right now.”

 

As if on cue, Nora let out a massive yawn behind Jaune, rubbing one of her watering eyes.

 

He nodded, sighing with his whole body. “Yeah, okay. Tomorrow then?”

 

Blake nodded, attempting a smile. “Tomorrow. We’ll have breakfast together. Figure out where to go from here.”

 

Jaune nodded, smiling a little. Nora yawned again and waved lazily at the rest of their room. “M’kay. G’night guys.”

 

“Good night.” 

 

Blake turned back to Yang as the door quietly shut behind them. There was a beat, and Ruby’s safety clicked back into place.

 

“He’s gone. A car came and picked him up.” Ruby frowned, collapsing her weapon and setting it against the wall gently.

 

"...Your brother’s a dick Weiss." Yang said finally, placing her hands on her hips.

 

Weiss had set Myrtenaster across her lap, silent and contemplative. Yang could almost pinpoint the moment everything hit her, watching dismayed as Weiss’ shoulders dipped with the weight of a globe. Ruby approached her partner slowly, her expression changing rapidly with indecision, like the way they'd used to flip through channels on Saturday mornings. 

 

"I'm aware, Yang." Weiss replied, her voice like the fragile drifting of snow. "He's…" She hissed out a frustrated sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose. "He's...such a pain.”

 

There was much more that was unsaid, Yang could tell. Weiss’ body was curled inwards, her large blue shirt making her seem so small. Like a woman holding up a world of worries, bending beneath the weight. There was an incessant tug of ‘do something’ in Yang’s chest, concern etched into the faces of her teammates.

 

"I can beat him up for you." She said abruptly.

 

Weiss let out a surprised laugh, though it wasn't as mirthful as Yang had hoped. "No, that wouldn't accomplish anything. Thank you, though."

 

"What are you going to do..?" Blake asked softly.

 

"I'm not sure what I  _ can _ do." Weiss said. “My father’s influence is everywhere, especially in Atlas. I don’t know a single company or establishment that wouldn’t bow to his needs. Even the Atlas Council fears his influence.”

 

“So the threat is legit?” Yang frowned, placing a hand on her hip. 

 

Weary, she replied. “Very.”

 

Blake stepped out from beside Yang, cocking her head to the side. “Doesn’t  _ your _ name carry the same weight though? Even if you aren’t the heiress anymore, the Schnee name still has gravity.”

 

Weiss shrugged, rubbing her arm. “Not exactly.  _ My _ name only has value if it has money to back it up. Without my title as heiress, the name ‘Weiss Schnee’ is just an empty promise to people in power. They only see value in dust and lien. Or potential suitors.”

 

“That’s not true! We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you! They weren’t gonna let any of us in, but you convinced them to give us a chance.” Ruby sat next to Weiss, reaching out and gently grasping her hand. “You’re one of the smartest people I know, Weiss. Honestly everyone on our team is super smart, so I’m sure we’ll all be able to come up with a way to help.”

 

Yang nodded firmly, her senses oddly hyper aware of Blake’s subtle presence beside her. Half of her mind had been focused on Ruby and Weiss, while the other half felt dazed by Blake’s close proximity, wondering absently about the flecks of black and purple shadow dashing in and out of her peripherals. Maybe she’d finally reached her exhausted limit?

 

 She’d been ignoring the throbbing in her muscles for literal hours, but it didn’t take much to remember that her body felt like it’d been hit by a fucking train. She’d absorbed literally all the shock from Adam’s last big attack, and despite giving it back to him, she still felt bruised down to her bones.

 

“Maybe we should rest before getting into this.” Blake interjected gently, her ears drooping with a wave of exhaustion. “We did promise Jaune and the others to make a plan with them.”

 

“...Yeah, you’re right.” Weis said, pressing a palm into her eye socket. “I’m sorry that my family is… is like this.”

 

Ruby shook her head, reaching over and loosely wrapping her fingers around Weiss’ wrist, pulling her hand away from her eye gently. Her voice was tired, but still able to reach a chipper note. “It’s okay! We knew things would be kind of crazy here. Besides, it’s not like  _ you  _ told Shitley to stalk us at our hotel.”

 

Weiss, Yang, and Blake all stared at Ruby with wide disbelieving eyes. She looked at her team innocently, though a familiar spark of mischief had curled at the corners of her lips. Yang was the first to break, snorting and raising her hand for a high five.

 

Her blonde hair flew off her shoulders as she was blasted with rose petals. There was a solid  _ slap _ of their palms connecting, jolting Blake and Weiss from their shock. Weiss couldn’t help the laugh bubbling up in her chest - though it seemed she wasn’t sure if it was funny because she was exhausted, or because the shock of Ruby swearing had caught her off guard. 

 

Yang zeroed in on Blake’s quiet laughter rising beside her, the cat faunus reaching out and murmuring something in Ruby’s ear. 

 

To Yang’s immense surprise, Ruby’s cheeks slowly turned bright pink. Her movements turned stiff as she whipped around and disappeared in a flash of petals. 

 

She reappeared with her arm hooked with Weiss’, awkwardly announcing, “C’mon bestie, to sleep!”

 

“Wh- Ruby??” Myrtenaster nearly fell onto the floor if it wasn’t for Ruby’s quick reflexes. 

 

Weiss looked at Yang in bewilderment as their team leader dragged her away. Ruby placed the rapier against the wall near Crescent Rose before the odd pair disappeared into their room. The door closed behind them, and the quiet peace from before Whitley’s arrival had returned. Yang glanced over at Blake warily. 

 

“What did you tell her?” She asked.

 

“Oh, just something I noticed.” Blake replied with a sly smile. She walked over to the table, setting her broken weapon between the abandoned plates of food. 

 

Yang raised an eyebrow, following her slowly. “What did you notice?”

 

“Weiss seemed like she could use a pick-me-up, and I heard she’s become rather fond of partner cuddles,” Blake chuckled, looking over her shoulder at Yang, crescents of liquid gold peering at her from under thick lashes. “I know I’ve become rather fond of them.”

 

Yang felt a spark surge through her veins - a moment of desire inspired by the cut of Blake’s lithe body. The long black hair dripping over her collarbones like spilled ink. Drawn in by the inviting curve of her lips.

 

She moved to her partner as if through water, breath held static in her lungs. Light, warm fingers grazed the edge of Blake’s scar at her hip, and Yang pretended not to hear the soft stutter of air in her chest.

 

“Yang,” Blake breathed.

 

“I know we’re both tired, and what we did today - technically yesterday - still hasn’t sunk in yet.” Yang said lowly, heart pounding slow with the halt of time.

 

The length of her body pressed lightly into Blake’s side, slow enough to give her partner an option to refuse. Her fingertips traced the outside of her scar, the criss-cross pattern grounding them to the moment. 

 

“We should talk,” Blake whispered, trying to pretend she wasn’t as breathless as she sounded.

 

Yang hesitated, snapping free of the spell. She nodded slowly, time resuming its race as she took a measured step back. Probably for the best, she reasoned, before she did something truly impulsive. “We should sleep, too.”

 

Slightly shaken, Blake nodded, her cat ears perked up at full attention. The fur along the edges of her ears seemed fluffier than usual, which Yang made a curious note of. 

 

“I… There’s only one bed.” Blake murmured, her hand ghosting over Yang’s right arm.

 

“I...I can take the floor. It wouldn’t be a new thing for me.” Yang murmured, steps stuttering in place before she escaped their little bubble of tension. 

 

She swore she could feel their auras snapping at each other and she walked out of range, the spark of desire humming under her skin as she passed. 

 

The faunus looked ready to protest, but Yang quickly continued to speak. “I’m uh..gonna brush my teeth. I’ll help you put the food away after. We’ll reheat it tomorrow for breakfast.”

 

Blake’s mouth worked up and down wordlessly, before nodding haplessly. Yang practically escaped to their shared room, pressing her back to the wall as her heart threatened to leap out of her chest. She heard Blake muttering to herself, goosebumps rising along her arms as the words drifted to her ears.

  
“You expect me to talk when you look at me like  _ that? _ ”


	4. rise up from shadows and into the light

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! Raise your hand if you're crying in the club about the RWBY soundtrack 🙋🙋🙋🙋🙋
> 
> Again thank you so much for your comments and kudos!! I read every single one of them and I love them all T.T My apologies about how short each chapter is btw, I'm goin with a theme here lol

* * *

 

Blake awoke with red bleeding behind her eyes, a scream trapped in her throat. 

 

Her heart pounded down to the marrow of her bones, the dream fading as the hotel’s floral print walls came back into focus. Anxiety remained stuck to her skin like sweat, her hip aching as if phantoms were reopening the wound with bare fingers and nails. She shivered, pressing a hand to her chest, willing her heart to calm down.

 

"Blake?" Yang croaked from the other side of the room, blankets whispering as she sat up. 

 

The faunus ran a shaking hand through tangled black bangs, feeling the skin pull tightly against her throat with each breath. She closed her eyes, releasing a shuddering sigh. 

 

"It's...I'm fine. Just a nightmare."

 

Yang didn't respond, but she started to shift around quietly. Blake could hear her breathing, ears swiveling atop her head to catch the steady, rhythmic pulse of Yang’s heart across the room. It was too faint to feel reassuring. 

 

Yang’s shadow rose slowly, blankets dropping to her little patch of floor she’d sprawled out on. Blake caught the look of indecision through the darkness; watched her hand twitch towards the detached prosthetic laying on the nightstand. She seemed to make a decision, refusing the arm and looking in her direction.

 

She knew Yang couldn’t see her very well in the dark, but she had a feeling Yang didn’t need it to find the bed. Gold locks cascaded over her orange sleep shirt, black short shorts cut off at the top of her thighs. Blake found comfort in the familiar sight of Yang in pjs - it brought lighter memories to the surface. 

 

"Scoot over." Yang said with a sleepy rasp. “We’re havin’ partner cuddles.”

 

Blake immediate scooted to the side, giving Yang enough room to squeeze in under the covers. As soon as another person’s warmth touched her, she felt her entire body relax. Her nightmare couldn’t linger with such safety, chased away from the corners of her mind by sleepy lilac eyes and a smile Blake wanted to melt into.

 

She sighed softly, facing Yang and curling up just enough for their knees to touch. Yang's single hand lay between them, extended like an offering. 

 

Blake reached across and touched her palm, the tip of her finger tracing a flaming heart into her callouses. Yang shivered, gently coaxing their fingers to weave together. With palms touching, it felt too much like destiny had made a home for them there.

 

"Do you wanna talk about your dream?" Yang asked quietly.

 

Feeling completely safe for the first time in a  _ very  _ long time, Blake couldn't help but yawn in response. Her ears folded back just enough to fit her head under Yang's chin, pressing close for heat. 

 

"Later." Blake mumbled, breathing in the lingering smell of warm leather and traces of gunpowder. It felt like coming home. "You're warm."

 

Yang laughed softly, squeezing Blake's hand in hers. "What can I say? I'm an eternal flame, baby."

 

"Hm." Blake's eyes and tongue felt heavy, sleep reaching out to claim her once more. Drifting off to the steady heart tapping against her cheek.

 

When she awoke next, a blinding sliver of dawn had escaped through the curtains in a single, evil point of light. Grunting softly, she buried her face in her pillow to escape. 

 

The pillow breathed.

 

Blake's eyes snapped open, tensing and releasing in a rapid flush of emotions. A strange relief flooded her at the sight of pale skin peering through a mane of diluted sunshine. Yang's hair filled whatever space was left between them, though there wasn't much to spare. Blake's left leg was trapped between Yang's powerful thighs, and her entire right side was numb from staying in one position most of the night. 

 

Light snores drifted from above her, Yang's mouth parted slightly as she slept. Her hand was pinned to her chest, her fingers twitching sporadically as she dreamed. As cute as Blake found it, she found that with consciousness came the pressing need to pee. Which meant untangling herself from Yang's death grip and thighs.

 

Carefully extracting herself from her sleeping koala of a partner, Blake managed to slip into the bathroom like a ghost. She took care of business and was washing her hands when she heard the door across from theirs creak open. 

 

The soft mumbles of Ruby and Weiss moving around the kitchen was achingly similar to many mornings spent in the common room at Beacon. Cups clacked together, followed by stern hissing and hasty whispered apologies.

 

Blake bit back a smile, feeling oddly chipper despite her night terror. She debated about joining the first two letters of her team, but a warm bed (and warm company) was very enticing. Her toes were already numbing on the freezing wood floors.

 

Deciding to let the girls have their morning, Blake padded back to the bed and shuffled back under the covers. Yang had rolled onto her back in her absence, a single calf dangling freely off the bed. She hummed sleepily as Blake rejoined her, her good hand tucked halfway underneath the hem of her shirt.

 

She sighed in satisfaction as she pressed close, drinking in the heat wafting from Yang’s body. The blonde shifted quietly, mumbling something in her sleep. Blake shifted closer, cold toes fitting on one of her partner’s calves.

 

Yang’s eyes shot open. She scooted away from Blake with a yelp, tilting over the edge of the bed and landing on the floor with a loud thump. 

 

Blake sat up in alarm, her ears perked up worriedly. "Yang??"

 

The door swung open wildly as Ruby and Weiss barged in. Weiss was clutching Myrtenaster tightly, eyes darting around the room with deadly precision.

 

Ruby brandished a full coffee cup, spilling it everywhere. “What’s happening?? I have hot coffee I’m not afraid to use it!”

 

Blake and Yang froze, staring at the rest of their team in bewilderment. Weiss hesitated in the pause, glancing at Yang on the floor and rolling her eyes. She dropped her stance, cocking her hip to the side. “Ruby, you’re spilling everywhere.”

 

Yang slowly picked herself back up, blinking blearily at them. “...Guys I’m fine.” She looked at Blake, eyes narrowing playfully. “Your feet are  _ fucking  _ freezing."

 

Blake blinked, the tenseness evaporating from her body and replaced by embarrassment. "O-oh." She tried not to smile, sliding to the edge of the bed. She’d accepted that she was up for the day. "Sorry, I didn't think you felt the cold."

 

"I can't use my semblance when I'm sleeping." Yang yawned, groaning as she stretched her arms out to either side of her body. "Gets cold real quick."

 

"Sorry for barging in,” Ruby said bashfully, Weiss silently taking the coffee from her before she spilled anymore. 

 

Blake shrugged. “I was up already, it’s fine.” 

 

“Maybe knock next time?” Yang said, wiggling her stump at Ruby with a quirked eyebrow. “Remember last time you did that?”

 

Ruby flushed a deep red that rivaled her cape, surprising her partner and Blake with an off-kilter giggle. “Oh yeah - nope nope won’t happen again, promise!”

 

“What happened last time?” Blake asked curiously, meeting Weiss’ equally confused gaze. The ex-heiress shrugged, accidentally taking a sip from Ruby’s coffee and grimacing.

 

Yang grinned, “Well you see -”

 

A gust of roses buffeted the blonde as Ruby suddenly zipped to her side and slapped a hand over Yang’s mouth. “Nope nothing - nothing happened!”

 

Yang’s soft purple eyes crinkled at the corners with a covered grin, and Ruby quickly snatched her hand back with a screech. 

 

“Yang that was  _ so _ gross don’t lick me with morning breath-!” 

 

Ruby screeched again, Blake’s ears flicking back at the piercing but joyful sound as Yang suddenly locked her stump around Ruby’s neck. She held her firmly in place, knuckles driving into Ruby’s two-toned head for a vicious noogie.

 

Weiss rolled her eyes fondly, inviting Blake with a gesture to the door. The sisters began duking it out, Ruby squirming valiantly in her grip as Yang cried out, “I thought you said Ozpin was teaching you melee little sister! Where’d all that skill go??”

 

Blake held back a snort, smiling as she followed Weiss out of the room. 

 

Yang’s laughter and words followed them out the door, Ruby yowling like a dying cat. “C’mon Rubes you can’t let a girl with one hand beat you!”

 

Blake drifted into the kitchen quietly, but soon a laugh bubbled up in her chest, bursting forth in a string of giggles. Weiss gave her an odd look, but she couldn’t resist for long. They laughed together, free and unabashed through the sounds of sibling chaos.

 

Weiss settled down first, commenting breathlessly, “You know, I’m worried they’ll hurt themselves one day.”

 

“They’ve been doing it for so long, I don’t think we have anything to worry over.” Blake grinned. Her heart had warmed till it felt like there was a fire blazing in her chest, sheer love of her found family hitting her rather suddenly. 

 

Weiss set Ruby’s coffee off to the side, picking up her own and leaning her hip against the counter. She smiled, her pretty white hair loose over her shoulder. Blake marveled at the sheer difference a year had made with Weiss, her hardened personality now soft with familiarity and kindness.

 

Blake stifled the emotions welling in her chest, a shaky sigh leaving her. “I’ve missed this.”

 

Weiss’ smile grew gentle, thoughtful. Her blue eyes drifted to the happy chatter and laughter spilling from Yang and Blake’s room. 

 

“...Yeah. Me too.”

 

Blake felt a soft purr rise in her chest, though she disguised it as a thoughtful hum. “You know what else I’ve missed?”

 

Weiss tilted her head to the side, the question in her eyes. Blake grinned, nodding at the rapier resting by Weiss’ hip. 

 

“Team practice.”

 

Ruby popped her head into the main room, silver eyes wide with excitement and her hair sticking up in every direction. “Did someone say team practice??”

 

Blake snorted softly, murmuring, “And I thought I had good hearing.”

 

Ruby bounced into the kitchen, the lot of them feeling much higher in spirits than the night before. Yang followed her out, a click and hiss emitting from her black and yellow prosthetic as she fitted it onto the adjoining piece. She flexed the hand experimentally, fingers dancing in the air.

 

Ruby slid past Weiss and snatched her cooling coffee off the counter, draining it in one gulp. 

 

“Slow down there Oobleck,” Yang drawled, stretching her arms above her head, linking fingers to calibrate the prosthetic. 

 

She had seen the procedure a few times now, but Blake’s eyes still drifted over Yang’s toned body, convincing herself it was just a quiet appreciation of her partner’s effort to maintain muscle. Her thoughts wandered to their conversation the night before, pink rising to her olive cheeks. The conversation continued around her, though it sounded a bit muffled as Yang’s shirt rode up just a bit on her stomach.

 

“-ake. Blake? Helloooo, Remnant to Blake. Guys I think we lost her.”

 

Blake blinked rapidly, cheeks turning cherry red as she snapped her gaze up to her amused partner. Yang was much closer than before, a small smile on her face. “There she is. How was your trip?”

 

“T-trip?” Blake’s gold eyes darted to the side, but Weiss and Ruby were watching them with matching mugs in hand, as if observing a spectacle. 

 

“Yeah, obviously your mind was somewhere else.” Yang said cheekily.

 

“I- sorry, I didn’t realise I tuned you out.” Blake replied, recovering quickly. She could feel slight sparks rolling off her skin, a strange electric tension tugging between them. It was...only a little addictive. “What were you saying?”

 

“That Ruby should conserve her energy. We have to plan what to do next.” Weiss chimed in, an odd lilt added to her voice that drew Yang and Blake’s attention away from each other. Her mouth was set in a frown, snowy eyebrows pinched together. “...Or at least, to figure out how to handle the relic while in Atlas.”

 

“Oh,” Blake said softly, her attention fully converted by Weiss’ seriousness. “Yeah...we should definitely figure that out.”

 

“Let’s go see if Jaune is up.” Ruby said, her cheer a little forced as she reached out and took Weiss’ hand. “We’ll have everyone over for breakfast, it’ll be great!”

 

The stiffness in Weiss’ shoulders seemed to leave, the ex-heiress nodding quietly in assent. Following Ruby’s gentle lead, Weiss set Myrtenaster back on the table as they passed. 

 

Blake chanced a look at Yang, reading the odd expression on her face as...intrigue. Pride. Feeling a bit of deja vu, Blake asked softly, “What is it?”

 

Yang sighed softly, smiling as Ruby swung Weiss’ hand in hers playfully. Her tone was slightly wistful, leaning into Blake’s space. “Oh, nothing.”

 

Blake felt that odd electric current run up her arms, the hair raising off the back of her neck as Yang decided to join the others to the door. Out of the corner of her eye, she could have sworn there was a spark of gold; a wisp of violet. She quickly turned to look, but there was nothing there.

 

“Blake, are you coming?” Ruby called, bouncing on her toes a bit. 

 

She hesitated, gold eyes flicking over the empty space where she’d seen the colors. She inched a step towards the door, before turning completely and brushing it off as nothing. She went to join her team, smiling softly.

 

“Yeah, right behind you.”


	5. there'll be no rest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit guys there's so many of you???? Thanks for giving my little story a chance, I hope y'all are enjoying it so far! This is a doozy of a chapter, lots of talking, Ruby's really gay, etc etc
> 
> Comments and kudos are appreciated immensely!! I read all of them, and ya'll are so kind it makes me cry T.T
> 
> Also sidenote: I've been listening to that fuckin Beehaw song on the RWBY album, and even though it's totally a response to a meme, it's also WILD to listen to it from a musician's point of view. I hear the scale runs that the violin and banjo correlate and I lose my goddamn mind EVERY time. God bless the Williams for gifting us this amazing soundtrack, and also if you like cool folk remixes of video game themes, you should check out the band featured on Armed and Ready, they're called The Hit Points and their music is soooo good! They're not really well known though (at least on Spotify) so if you're into that music please check em out! Spread the love!

* * *

 

 

Gathering the troops took far too much time, in Ruby's opinion. 

 

Granted it usually took them half an hour to rouse Nora into doing anything before ten am, but really! Ruby knew Nora was a heavy sleeper from the road to Haven, but now she had an accomplice to her deep slumber. They'd found her in the room passed out cold, her entire body wrapped around Ren's rigid form. He'd looked up at them with a barely contained sheepish smile, vibrant pink eyes spelling defeat.

 

Thankfully they'd managed to coax her awake with the promise of pancakes and extra syrup. It'd been a close call for sure. Ruby wasn’t sure what they would have done if they didn’t have room service. Corralling nine adults and one teenager in a two bedroom apartment was easier said than done, but they made it work. Ruby didn't mind the closeness, she liked being close to her friends. 

 

Qrow didn't smell like a distillery either, which was a first in quite a while. She welcomed him to sit on her left with a proud grin, to which he ruffled her black and red hair and sat on the floor. Weiss took her right after being waved frantically to the spot. She did so with a roll of her eyes, daintily tucking her feet beneath her, long blue shirt splayed out on her pale thighs. 

 

Ruby realised she was staring, but thankfully a plate slid into her hands before she said something stupid. Room service had arrived in a timely manner, plates were passed around, a fresh pot of coffee was made. Nora's plate ended up halfway empty by the time everyone had sat down in the cramped living room.

 

Ruby cleared her throat, calling for their attention. She'd grabbed Weiss' suitcase from their room, unlatching it and pulling out the Relic of Knowledge. She let it float in the center of the table, allowing it to gather the attention of her friends.

 

"So." Ruby said, looking around the room. A partial smile pulled at her lips. "We made it to Atlas in one piece."

 

"By the skin of our teeth, yes." Maria said, her left eye whirling as sparks few off the metal. "We cut it awfully close there at the end."

 

_ Do teeth have skin? _ Ruby wondered, shaking the thought away hastily. Now wasn't the time to get distracted. She resisted the impulse to look at Weiss again.

 

"I guess it's up to Ironwood to see us. Get an idea of what we're workin' with here." Qrow drawled, tilting his head up to his niece.

 

Ruby nodded. "That's one part of it, yeah. We don't know if we can trust Ironwood, but I don’t think we should worry about that right now. Our main priority should be getting to see him at all.”

 

Oscar nodded, chiming in quietly, “If what that soldier said was true, it could make this whole mission much,  _ much _ harder.”

 

“He said Ironwood was locked in his office right?” Yang asked, frowning. “Why would a general do that during a border lockdown?”

 

Everyone turned to Qrow for answers, and he nearly choked on a sip of coffee from the sudden attention. He coughed, wiping his mouth with his sleeve. “James has always been an oddball. He’s a logical man, convinced that the world revolves around Atlas, and himself.”

 

“I’ve known a few men like that in my time.” Maria snorted, reaching for her coffee cup and missing it by a few inches. Jaune gently nudged it into her grasping fingers.

 

“Yeah well,” Qrow sighed, “He’s also stubborn and pigheaded.”

 

“Oo, check and check! My my, it’s far too early for a trip down memory lane.”

 

“Guys, focus.” Ruby said, frowning. “How do we get to Ironwood?”

 

“We don’t even know where his office is!” Nora said, speaking around a mouthful of pancake.

 

“Weiss, would your sister know?” Blake asked quietly, tilting her head to the side.

 

The ex-heiress paused, contemplating. “...Yes, I believe she would. I can give her a call, my scroll should be working since we’re so close to the CCT.”

 

“How crazy would it be if your sister was the maiden?” Nora grinned.

 

Weiss’ face turned paler than usual, her voice peaking. “What?!”

 

“I mean c’mon, she has your semblance and her name is Winter. It’s pretty obvious.”

 

“My sister is not the winter maiden! She would ha- Well, she wouldn’t have told me it because it’s classified information. I’m…” Weiss huffed, pinching the bridge of her nose.  “That would be too much.”

 

“Why are we so hung up on Ironwood anyway?” Yang asked, “If he knew where the winter maiden was, what makes you think he’d tell us? It seems like he has a shit ton of other problems to deal with.”

 

“If the general is as powerful and paranoid, as you say he is," Maria said casually, tapping the side of her goggles as they spun and sparked, blue light dimming from beneath metal eyelids. “It would make sense for him to keep someone like that close by.”

 

“Or maybe he's as clueless as the rest of us." Qrow said gruffly, giving his coffee a swirl as if he wished it hit harder.

 

Ruby fidgeted in place, uncertainty bleeding into her racing thoughts, turning them sour. They didn't have much to go on, and she wasn't entirely sure where to begin with tackling this huge roadblock.

 

“It sure would be nice if Ozpin could tell us what the fuck the winter maiden looks like.” Yang grumbled, her eyes drifting over to Oscar as if she could glare at his other soul alone.

 

Blake gently curled her fingers around Yang’s metal wrist. The blonde’s hostility died as quickly as it flared. Oscar looked into his hot chocolate as if searching for answers, his thin shoulders curled towards his chest in shame. 

 

Ruby gave a glare to her sister, soft flowered purple clashing with hard chips of silver. Yang was forced to look away first, having the decency to seem ashamed. 

 

Oscar spoke up, voice quiet and soft. “He hasn’t spoken to me since the plane thing. I...he’s locked himself back up. I’m sorry guys, I wish I could help more.”

 

“We know it’s not your fault Oscar.” Jaune said. He patted Oscar’s shoulder in solidarity, smiling. “Everyone’s just frustrated.”

 

“It sucks!” Nora complained, setting her plate aside and taking on a rare irritated tone. “We risked our butts to get to Atlas, but we still have to wait for answers.”

 

“We have to remember that we’re on a time constraint too,” Blake said, meeting Ruby’s gaze solidly. “The longer we stay in one place, the more risk we pose to the city. We brought danger with us." 

 

She gestured to the lamp floating between all of them. "There's two relics in Atlas now. Which means twice the amount of Grimm.”

 

“Did you  _ see _ the size of the air fleet? I think they’ll be fine.” 

 

“The military is up here, Nora.” Blake said sharply, her ears flicking back into her hair. “Do you think they spared anything for Mantle?”

 

Ruby rubbed the side of her face with a sigh. The conversation died, Blake’s hands clenching and unclenching in her lap. 

 

“Mantle has one of the highest rates of faunus poverty in all of Remnant.” Blake continued, a muscle in her jaw twitching. “The majority of its people are miners and families struggling to get by. We’re putting innocent people at risk by taking our time here.”

 

Voices started to arise from the group, protests and apologies overlapping in a headache inducing cacophony. Ruby growled softly, pain pulsing in her temple with a steady tempo.

 

“HEY!” She barked shrilly, slapping her hand on the table. The force was enough to rattle plates, coffee spilling over the surface from various cups.

 

The entire room fell completely silent in shock, nine wide pairs of eyes turning to the black and red haired girl. She hissed out a breath between her teeth, just barely resisting the urge to shake out her stinging palm. She  _ hated _ raising her voice, and her headache hadn't liked it either. 

 

Cool calloused fingertips brushed her hand beneath the table, and Ruby immediately flipped her palm up to accept the support. She released the breath she'd been holding, feeling her headache subside just a bit.

 

“We need to calm down,” Ruby lamented, “And focus on one problem at a time. Okay?”

 

Her friends nodded in response, still slightly in shock. Qrow had a proud little smile on his scruffy face, a distant memory gleaming in his eye. 

 

Maria used the lull in conversation to stand. The glow of her eyes had dimmed considerably, one metal eyelid hanging loosely in its frame. “Well. As fun as this has been, I’m afraid I won’t be of any use to you kids until I get my eyes checked.”

 

Ruby frowned, "Are you leaving now?"

 

"I have an old friend who's been tuning up my eyes for years." She said with a shrug, her thick necklace clacking with the motion. "He's very particular about his schedule, so I have to catch him before he gets busy again. You can fill me in on the details later."

 

Ruby opened her mouth to protest further, but a small tug on her hand drew her attention away. 

 

She glanced at Weiss, dark eyebrows furrowed in confusion. The ex-heiress gave a subtle shake of her head, blue eyes flicking past Ruby’s head to Qrow.

 

The old huntsman groaned and heaved himself to stand, stretching up and nearly touching the ceiling with his height. He relaxed, placing a casual palm on the hilt of his sword. “I’ll go with you.” He glanced down at Ruby, giving her a playful wink. “Can't be too careful in a city this big. Besides, one problem at a time, right?”

 

The tension drained from Ruby’s shoulders and spine, smiling in relief. 

 

“Right,” She replied softly.

 

"Text me where you're stayin' next kiddo," He said, waving his scroll at her. "We'll find you later."

 

Maria snorted, already shuffling towards the door. “Like I need a babysitter at  _ my _ age.”

 

“After Cordovin, I think you might need a chaperone.” Qrow said, the rasp in his voice lilting with amusement as he followed her out the door. 

 

Their voices slowly faded down the hall, a shrill, “And what makes you think _ you’re _ a good chaperone,  _ bird brains!”  _ Piercing through the door.

 

Ruby felt a bit more at ease with Qrow helping Maria to her mechanic, though a small part of her wished she could go with. It'd been far too long since she'd tuned up Crescent Rose and she knew with Maria's goggles, her mechanic had to have some  _ sweet _ tools. Her own tools were starting to strip away from use, she definitely needed to get a new set. She filed that job away for later, mentally apologizing to her scythe for the delay.

 

Ruby squeezed Weiss’ hand gently in thanks, reluctantly letting her go to pull the floating lamp closer to her. 

 

“Okay, so we have the beginnings of a plan. Weiss will call Winter to see what's up with Ironwood, Maria and Qrow are doing their own thing.” She nodded at Blake. “You’re right. We’re putting people at risk the longer we stay here - but we also can buy some time. Mantle has its own natural barriers against Grimm, and it should be enough until we can tell Ironwood, or at least Winter of the danger. We can explore Atlas and try to find some hunters who can tell us more. Maybe we can even pick up some things we need.”  _ Like a new tool set. _

 

“...We should probably go shopping for warmer clothes first.” Jaune spoke hesitantly, looking down at his armor and hoodie. “My hoodie is too thin for the weather here - I nearly got frostbite coming off the airship.”

 

“Good idea.” Ren said, his first words of the day offering his infinite wisdom. “It is inching more towards winter, and Atlas is almost uninhabitable without warmer clothes.”

 

Nora gasped excitedly. “Guys are we going on a  _ shopping trip??” _

 

“Hate to burst your bubble, but with what money?” Yang asked, her fingers tracing over the gashes in her metal arm. 

 

“I..I have a bit saved up still.” Oscar said.

 

“You got a new outfit last volume, you need to wait your turn.” Nora said dismissively, reaching over and ruffling the boy’s hair.

 

“...I can pull some strings." Weiss said slowly, as if formulating a plan. "Blake was right last night - my name does hold some weight to it. If my father has been broadcasting his 'concern' for me to the public, I might be able to use that."

 

"How?"

 

The ex-heiress gave a thin smile, rebellion sparking in her eyes. She lifted her tone to a mocking version of herself a few years ago, saying haughtily, "Didn't you know? Schnees don't carry credit cards in Atlas. It's all billed directly to the manor."

 

The entire room stared at her with wide eyes, the idea of using the Schnee fortune under her family's nose slightly thrilling.

 

Ruby couldn't help but think back to the conversation the night before, worry settling deep into the pit of her stomach. "...Weiss wouldn't that be dangerous?"

 

Weiss nodded, her jaw firmly set in defiance. "Probably. But I don't care."

 

"Why..would it be dangerous?" Oscar asked.

 

"Her brother Shitley showed up last night." Yang replied, "He tried to threaten us with his daddy's money, just to intimidate Weiss back home.”

 

“As if that would convince me.” Weiss grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm almost offended that they thought it would work."

 

Ruby raised a finger, declaring, "I am also offended on your behalf!"

 

Weiss snorted, placing her hands on the table as she stood up. She took out her scroll, gently brushing past Ruby. Their pinkies hooked for a moment before she pulled away. "My hero. If you'll excuse me, I have to call my sister."

 

Ruby's cheeks warmed, a grin on her face as she watched Weiss disappear into their shared room. She didn't question the rampaging butterflies in her stomach, used to their constant flutter of excitement when Weiss was around.

 

She turned back to the others and clapped her hands together. “Alright, plan created! Maybe we can ask around the shops and stuff for any… weird… rumors about ladies with weird abilities.”

 

“Ruby... you just described your entire team.” Ren said, a small smile on his face.

 

Laughter rose around the room as her face turned a deeper red. She pointed at Ren accusingly, “W-well, it describes your girlfriend too!”

 

Ren’s smile grew, cheeks flushing warmly as Nora made a sound somewhere between a squawk and a screech. He shrugged. “That is also true.”

 

The room devolved into more giggles, Nora burying her face in her hands and kicking her feet. Ren patted her shoulder in solidarity, Jaune laughing at their expense for once. Yang started to tease them playfully, the chatter fading into the back of Ruby’s mind as she became lost in thought.

 

What if Winter couldn’t help them? What would they do then? They had no idea where to start looking for the winter maiden, although Maria had a good point about Ironwood keeping powerful friends close by. From what Weiss had explained about the hierarchy of Atlas, the council was made up of several men and women from high profile families. Her family had held a seat on the council since her grandfather created the SDC, and Ironwood held two seats due to his position as both headmaster and general. There were a few other names Weiss had listed off, but Ruby had dropped off to sleep in the middle of it, lulled by the quiet cadence of her voice. 

 

She knew the maiden would have insane powers she’d have to learn how to control. Perhaps she was a student, or an alumni of Atlas Academy? How would they gain access to the academy if Ironwood was shut in his office? If Winter could help them get into the school as students it would make things much easier, but there was no telling if they’d allow them anywhere near it. 

 

And as much as Ruby missed Beacon and how times were back then - the simple fact was that they had too many important things to deal with. They couldn’t afford to spend time in classes, trying to uncover clues towards the maiden’s whereabouts. Plus it would be too dangerous to bring a relic into the academy, and there were far too many options outside of the school to consider. Like older hunters and huntresses, or literally all of Mantle.

 

The weight of these thoughts slammed nto Ruby’s shoulders like a boulder, her throat tightening as she tried to breathe underneath it all. 

 

“Ruby?” 

 

Yang’s voice cut through her thoughts like a knife, her expression immediately fixing itself to be brighter, happier. She was the team leader, she’d figure it out. She didn’t want them to know about her thoughts until she had a hopeful note to accompany their problems. A part of a solution, a plan to tackle it. 

 

One step at a time, breathe.

 

“I’m good, sorry.” She said sheepishly, ruffling the back of her black and red hair. It was getting rather long in the back, she might need to get it cut soon. “Lost in thought.”

 

Yang frowned suspiciously, but Blake had knowing eyes. She gently squeezed Yang’s knee, giving Ruby a calculated look. A cold sweat grew on the back of her neck, but Blake simply smiled. Silently promising to bring it up later. Ruby wasn’t sure if she was experiencing dread or relief at that unspoken promise.

 

Thankfully Weiss chose that opportune moment to return, her expression troubled as she clutched her scroll close.

 

“My sister is...very busy.” She began warily, her voice cutting through the quiet. “She only had a moment to speak with me. She would like to do dinner with me tomorrow night, to...catch up.”

 

“Well...that’s good, right?” Ruby said slowly, uncertainty coating her words. “It means we’ll get answers?”

 

“...I certainly hope so.” Weiss frowned, blue eyes narrowed to her scroll worriedly. “...She seemed distracted, which wasn’t like her at all.”

 

“Do you want us to go with you?” Jaune asked, his attention pulled back towards the seriousness of their conversation.

 

“No, no it’s fine. I’m not sure how Winter would take it if I showed up with seven or eight people.” She gave a pointed look to Ruby. “Qrow is not allowed within fifty feet of my sister this time around. She has enough stress to deal with as it is.”

 

Ruby couldn’t help but laugh softly, imagining what a reunion like that would entail. She wondered how much it cost to polish the streets of Atlas, let alone fill in holes caused by large scythes. Uncle Qrow had always had bad luck with the ladies - but he didn’t even need his semblance for Winter to dislike him.

 

“What about just three?” Blake asked, leaning back in her seat and crossing her ankles casually. “We could go with as a backup. Maybe get a different table, so you and your sister have some privacy.”

 

“Are you sure you want to do that Blake?” Weiss asked softly, making her way back to her seat beside Ruby. She almost couldn’t look Blake in the eye, shame dragging from her words. “...The venue is deep in Atlas’s silver district. They’ve remained very…  _ very  _ segregated there. Some establishments actually have ‘no faunus allowed’ policies, and I don’t want to make you do something that puts you in a position to be insulted, or arrested.”

 

Blake’s casual pose faltered, her cat ears swiveling backwards on her head as she bit her lip in thought. Her body language screamed indecision, jaw tightening.

 

“...I didn’t think it was that bad here.” Nora said softly, all traces of playfulness gone from her tone. 

 

“Atlas and Mantle were the worst with faunus slavery during the war.” Blake murmured, frowning. “I should’ve expected something like this.”

 

She took in a deep breath, looking at Weiss apologetically. “I don’t want to care about those rules, but -”

 

“How can you not?” Weiss answered for her, regret and guilt seeping from her like a poisonous miasma.

 

Ruby hated seeing their spirits fall so quickly, and Yang seemed to be on the same page. Ruby opened her mouth to speak at the same time Yang reached for Blake’s hand. 

 

“I’ll go with you to dinner.”

 

Weiss nearly choked, turning to her partner in surprise.

 

Ruby just smiled at her, all pearly white teeth and crinkled eyes. She saw Yang dipped her head to speak to Blake, their words too quiet to hear. 

 

“You...you will?” Weiss breathed, her curtain of silver hair drifting forward on her collarbone. Ruby definitely didn’t look. 

 

Feeling a little warm, Ruby laughed sheepishly. “Yeah, I mean we’re partners right? Plus I’ve already met her once so it’d be less weird if you brought me along - oh plus I have some stuff I wanna ask her about Atlas! I may not understand you and Winter’s relationship, but I know she cares about you and I wanna get on her good side y’know? So uh, yeah.” 

 

She cut off her rambling with a well-timed breath, grinning hesitantly. “...I wanna be there for you, in case anything goes weird.” 

 

Weiss looked almost overwhelmed, blinking furiously as her eyes misted over. She nodded slowly, choking out softly, “I… thank you, Ruby.”

 

Ruby’s face split into a wide grin, the butterflies returning with a vengeance. Fluttering light and warm in her chest. She found herself drifting forward, bumping their noses together fondly. She didn’t hear the hitch of Weiss’ breath in her throat, too focused on the pulse of blood in her own ears. 

 

“You’re one of my favorite people Weiss. I’d do anything for you.”

 

Weiss gulped, eyes closing as she allowed the closeness. She shyly bumped their noses together again, cool breath drifting between them. She smelled of coffee and mint, snowfall and holidays rolled into just three words. “...Same for me.”

 

Ruby giggled softly, feeling strangely light-headed with the exchange. Dizzy, almost. 

 

She was the first to lean back into a proper sitting position, a loopy smile growing on her lips. “So I guess we should shop for some fancy clothes, huh?”

 

Weiss straightened up as well, clearing her throat and appearing far more composed than Ruby could ever have achieved. “It would be appropriate, yes.”

 

“Before we go shopping, we should probably figure out what to do with the lamp.” Jaune called from the other side of the table. Nora was grinning at the four of them mischievously, a spark of intrigue in her frosty pale blue eyes. Oscar seemed a bit confused by their exchange, but Ren had a knowing smile on his face. 

 

Pulled away from her moment with Weiss, Ruby’s cheeks started to flood with red. She glanced at the lamp floating at the edge of the table for a distraction, frowning.

 

Yang hummed, her fingers tangled with Blake’s as she stared at it thoughtfully. “...Well we can’t leave it in the hotel room.”

 

“She has a name, yang.” Ruby pouted.

 

Yang held up her unoccupied metal hand, smiling reluctantly. “Right, just because she’s a person in a lamp doesn’t mean she’s any less of a person.”

 

“You’d better remember it!” Ruby grinned.

 

“She shrinks, right?” Weiss asked, reaching out and taking the lamp in her hands. Lo and behold, it shrunk just enough to fit in her small palms. “Do we know why?”

 

“...No?”

 

“Have you tried experimenting with it?” 

 

“...No.” Ruby grinned sheepishly. “I kinda just… I dunno, I liked it on my belt.”

 

“Maybe it’s intention?” Jaune asked, reaching across the table. Weiss handed him the lamp. 

 

They all watched as Jaune focused on the soft blue glow, the light reflecting in his darker eyes. A beat passed, then two. 

 

A surprised gasp rose up between them as the lamp began to shrink smaller and smaller. It got to the size of a butterfly before it stopped, and Jaune looked up at everyone with a proud grin. He held it up. 

 

“Anyone have a necklace chain?”


	6. and darkness takes control

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos appreciated! Less fluff, but introspection from Weiss and a bit of Atlas :D

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU GUYS FOR YOUR COMMENTS I'M LEGIT IN LOVE!! You guys are so nice to me I can't T.T Also I'm so fucking gay for Weiss' V7 look, you bet your ass I'm fitting that in this fic 👌👌👌
> 
> Shorter chapter today, enjoy!

* * *

 

Weiss had been the one to suggest traveling to the next small city instead of the main towers, intending to slowly spiral their way deeper into the capital.  After a brisk journey to the nearest bustling train terminal made by crowding around space heater Yang, they'd crammed all eight people onto the car of a light rail.

 

With a low hum, spines of gravity dust activated and locked the carriage into the metal track. 

 

Ren and Oscar had snagged the only seats available, Nora and Jaune left to stand near one of the back windows. Team RWBY ended up pressed into the back wall of the car, forced to hold their own because there was no more space on the upper railing. 

 

Unused to public transport, Weiss had been squished up to the window, blocked in by the rest of her team. She was content to stay there - but when the car took off at Mach 7 with an unexpected jolt, she suddenly received a faceful of Yang's boobs, and a humble yet lethal dose of mortification. Blake and Yang helped her regain her footing with barely restrained giggles.

 

 At least they  _ tried _ to be respectful about it. 

 

Ruby and Nora hadn't stopped laughing for a solid ten minutes. They would have kept going if Weiss hadn't threatened to throw them off the train. 

 

Things calmed down after that, and Weiss took a moment to look out the window. She watched as they kareened across the open fields between the outer towns, and the vast city she’d grown up in. Weiss could see the largest spire rising to meet a pale overcast sky, standing atop a giant glass bubble that sat at the center of it all.

 

The Cross Continental Transmit System.

 

She remembered when Winter had taken her to the tower for the first time, on a rare weekend where her sister had come home from the Academy. Weiss was only twelve at the time, but that trip was one of her cherished memories. The inside had been made of polished metal and Atlas' patented blue marble, glass singing from the high ceilings as multiple chandeliers swayed with the building. 

 

Winter had immediately taken her to the very top of the tower. She remembered resisting the urge to press her nose against the glass walls, staring down at the spikes of buildings and the edge of the world. 

Her world had been so small back then, her thoughts shallow and meaningless. She’s looked at the packs of black marks crawling over the tundra in the distance, but she hadn’t spent a single moment worrying about them.

 

They were protected in Atlas. Untouchable.

 

_ "This is what we helped build, Weiss." _ Winter had said, with her perfect posture and fine features.  _ "Atlas is a part of the Schnee legacy. Our grandfather was instrumental in Atlas' rise to power, and it is our duty to see that it remains untouched. To protect it." _

 

Weiss had looked down at the buildings below, thinking of her father's disdain towards Winter's choices. The nights where she would lie awake and wonder if she'd ever be brave enough to follow her sister to the academy. She remembered being so involved about saving her grandfather’s legacy, she hadn’t yet realised that she needed to save herself first.

 

"Wow, I never realised how  _ big _ Atlas was." 

 

Weiss startled so badly she nearly knocked her head into the window, torn from her memories in a sudden reminder that she wasn't alone. Ruby had followed her distant gaze to the central spire, the polished building suddenly seeming so far away. Weiss curled her fingers into her palm, looking away from the glossy highrises. She took to the sky instead, admiring it as they passed beneath its expanse. Storm clouds crested the snow capped mountains behind the city like foam on arching waves, the sky colored like an arctic ocean close to the shore.

 

The train shuddered around them, the wind howling as it battered the sides of the car. Ruby squeezed past Blake to press her face into the window, her voice muffled from the frosted glass. “All of the buildings look like they’re made of ice!”

 

“Cold is a running theme it seems.” Weiss murmured, feeling her semblance hum at the tips of her fingers. 

 

“Are you okay, Weiss?” Blake asked, the question drawing Ruby away from the window to look at her. 

 

“I’m fine.” She said, catching a billboard flashing with the Schnee dust logo as they raced past. “I just… Atlas just has a lot of memories for me.”

 

“Good or bad?” Yang asked from behind her.

 

Weiss glanced over her shoulder. “Both.”

 

Blake smiled softly. “We can always make better memories.”

 

Ruby fidgeted restlessly by her faunus teammate, bouncing on her toes. Blake grimaced as Crescent Rose dug into her hip. “Yeah! That’s what today’s for!”

 

Weiss rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t help the small smile fighting its way through her melancholy. “We’ll see.”

 

Blake reached through her long black hair, humming as she curled a finger through the waves thoughtfully. “We’ve never gone shopping with all of us together.”

 

“I’m looking forward to it,” Yang grinned, leaning over Weiss’ shorter frame. Her mass of hair fell over her shoulder and nearly drowned Weiss in threaded sunshine, the heiress blustering through the strands. “I dunno about you guys but I’ve needed new clothes since Haven. My jacket’s on its last legs.” 

 

Ruby grinned back, her pale cheeks and nose still rosy from the cold. “Didn’t you rip it this morning?”

 

Yang sighed heavily, holding up her arm and displaying the long tear from her elbow to the outside of her shoulder. “I stretched and it just fucking gave up.” She flexed her exposed tricep as her arm stayed raised. 

 

Weiss had given up on escaping Yang’s hair, the car was far too cramped for her to move. She peered through Yang’s hair at Blake, whose ears on her head had begun to fluff up around the edges. Her oval pupils were blown wide, swallowing amber pools. 

 

Blake noticed Weiss’ eyebrow rising to her hairline and her dark cheeks flushed pink. She quickly looked away as the ex-heiress hummed under her breath.  _ Interesting. _

 

Ruby and Yang chattered for the rest of the ride, tossing outfit ideas back and forth excitedly. Weiss just leaned against the window, leeching Yang’s warmth and watching as the CCT tower grew smaller with distance.

 

Another ten minutes passed before the train began to slow, the station looming ahead with harsh angles and writhing crowds of people waiting at the platform. Weiss yelped as the train jerked beneath her feet, her palm slapping on the wall to stop herself from fumbling again. 

 

“I’m going to get this train conductor  _ fired!” _ She hissed, gritting her teeth. 

 

“I think they run on autopilot, but if you’re dedicated then go for it.” Blake said with a grin, looking out the window as the platform sped closer and closer. 

 

Weiss opened her mouth to retaliate, but Blake’s expression suddenly changed from peace to alarm. "Oh no -"

 

Out of the corner of Weiss’ eye, Jaune lunged for the emergency brake, pulling the chain so hard it snapped. The brakes shrieked, sparks flying up on either side of the train. Weiss activated her semblance out of blind instinct, civilians screaming as thirty small black glyphs tethered them to their seats.

 

Weiss caught a glimpse of the sparking track through the back window, and a wall made of black feathers and white bone. Red eyes flashed, before the metal walls collapsed around her. Weiss felt the impact as it shuddered through the marrow of her bones, scraping against her aura.

 

Like a light, everything flicked to black.


	7. you don't wanna mess with me i'm somethin' higher

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY Y'ALL I'M ALIVE
> 
> Sorry for the long cliffhanger, I forgot I had a deadline for five chapters due in like a week, and I hadn't started the chapters yet so I was scrambling to put em together lolol I MADE IT THO - and holy shit I spent the entire week writing for a separate story, but all I could think about was this fanfic and how much I wanted to keep going with it :D Definitely fueled by all of your wonderful sweet comments, you guys are so fucking nice and amazing T.T
> 
> Anyways I wrote this listening to Nevermore on repeat, enjoy! Comments and kudos appreciated immensely!! <3
> 
> Edit: I deleted and reposted this chapter cause AO3 is being weird about posting this fic lol

* * *

 

Yang awoke under a black sky and two large, piercing red moons. A clicking noise grated against the ringing in her ears, her head swimming from narrowly avoiding a concussion. Her semblance crackled with her aura, the train's impact storing plenty of energy in her muscles. Huh… wasn't it daytime when they left?

 

The moons blinked at her.

 

"Oh  _shit-"_  

 

Pure instinct shot a bullet above her head, the kickback sending her skidding out from underneath the grimm just as its talons ripped into the snow. Rolling to her feet with the momentum, Yang faced it and cocked back her gauntlet at the same time, a used shotgun casing catapulting into the snow. 

 

The monster staggered forward on two legs encrusted with icy shards, its burning red eyes malicious and hungry. Two small, useless wings were folded along its bulbous body, its overly large head reaching at least eight feet in height and crested with frozen spires of ice and bone. Its beak and talons had a wicked curve, meant only for the ripping of flesh.

 

"Wow, giant chicken grimm. Atlas  _does_ have everything." Yang muttered under her breath, the muscles of her legs growing taut with anticipation. Her heart pumped a steady beat in her chest, drums to a tempo only her fists and feet could follow.

 

The grimm moved first.

 

It sprinted forward quicker than Yang expected - but bullets were always faster. She shot to the side, then another into the ground, vaulting up over its head. It changed trajectory on a dime, razor beak snapping up and catching the tail of her coat. 

 

Reacting, she sent a bullet straight into its face, kickback ripping her away from the sharp mouth. She didn't have time to land properly, catching the ground on her shoulders and flipping backwards to her feet, boots skidding in gray snow. More fire gathered under her skin, the beat of her heart increasing, the dance growing faster.

 

The creature shook its head, spitting out Yang's ripped coattail. The bone and ice on its face protected it from the worst of Yang's bullet, though pieces of the crest fell from the hinge of its jaw. It let out a piercing screech. Annoyed, she huffed out a breath of steam and braced.

 

It lunged forward again, but this time Yang was ready. She ran to meet it, dropping into a skid at the last second and firing two rounds between its legs. The creature wobbled and crashed into the ground with a dying cry, black dust scattering on the wind.

 

The fire pulsed and roared in her veins, but she breathed to keep it stoked and controlled. To calm the hearth. Rhythm still pounded against the bars of her ribs, and Yang turned to assess the damage.

 

They'd landed forty feet from the tracks in the middle of a small residential area. Scattered almost a mile in each direction were the ripped pieces of their train car, the car they’d been riding in crunched together in a way that metal should never bend. A sickening drop in her stomach gave her pause, and she thought of all the people they’d shared the ride with. Those who probably didn't have an unlocked aura to protect them. She zeroed in on a limp body halfway buried under twisted metal.

 

Shaking her head, she threw that thought into a box to deal with later. Her friends needed her more than the bodies in the snow. Yang started to run around the wreck, leaping up and slamming her heel across another grimm’s beak and knocking it completely off its feet with the force. She shot it in the throat and kept going, hair whipping through the wind behind her like rippling flames and ash. 

 

Yang searched the panicking people for her team, finding Ruby first. Always the brightest color amongst the white capped buildings. She had Crescent Rose out, the blade biting into the roof of the train station as she sniped grimm off one by one, helping the surviving civilians run to safety. 

 

The grimm that had been on the tracks had been obliterated in the impact, but there were still  _so_ many of them left. They were climbing on top of the small homes, snapping at people's heels, screeching all the while. One of the terror birds was scrabbling its way up to the roof, trying to get to Ruby. 

 

Yang started to run to her, but a row of icy glyphs lined up from behind her, a blur of white and blue skating by. Weiss used the last glyph to flip gracefully into the air, Myrtenaster beheading the grimm in an elegant swipe. Ruby wrenched her scythe out of the building, face lighting up when she saw Weiss.

 

Reassured that her sister was in good hands, Yang leapt up to the wreck of the train with a well placed bullet, sprinting along the mangled body and dispatching any grimm that crossed her path. Above her head came the roar of engines, Atlesian forces swooping in on helicarriers and dropping into the snow. Gunfire spat in a disorganized rhythm, the grimm screaming loudly as the forces moved forward.

 

Almost to the end of the train, Yang suddenly had to lung into a somersault to avoid a flying bird head crackling with lightning. She huffed a laugh, metal fist pressed into the train as Nora saluted her from a wrecked building. 

 

“Heads up!” She cackled as Ren appeared in mid sprint beside her.

 

He leapt off a weak wall and spun into a terror bird, his green blades biting into tar-like flesh and ripping it to dust. Jaune and Oscar were fighting nearby - to Yang’s surprise, Oscar was managing to hold his own against the grimm with just a blunt cane and pure determination. A few feet away Jaune carved through one of the grimm, grunting as he used the forward motion to throw his entire body behind his shield and daze another. They seemed to have their shit together. 

 

Worry wrapped itself around her as she searched the chaos for Blake. No sign of her faunus partner and energy still pulsing through her veins, she leapt off the train and ran to Nora. 

 

“Hey! Have you guys seen Blake?” She called, nimbly dodging Nora’s massive hammer as it slammed into a terror bird and sent it rocketing into the sky. 

 

Ren dropped down next to her, guns popping in Yang’s ears. A heavy thunk signaled another grimm down, his long black hair flipped over his shoulder. “She went to help the soldiers check for survivors,” He called, reloading. 

 

Yang nodded, patting her cargo pants and pulling out more ammunition. She backed up to Nora and Ren, empty shotgun shells scattering from her gauntlet and arm to make room for more. The fire dust ammunition  _ca-chunked_ into place, Yang knocking her fist back and reloading smoothly. 

 

The waves of grimm were already starting to dwindle, but Yang still had a nervous energy in her body, her hand shaking ever so slightly. She wanted to find Blake, and even after three more grimm fell at the mercy of her fists, she couldn’t shake the anxiety building in her heart. 

 

“I’m gonna go find her!” Yang called, Ren and Nora nodding in acknowledgement. She took off once more, flares screaming from her fists and picking off the grimm in her way. She headed back up the train’s carnage, her breathing loud in her ears as she darted between squads of soldiers picking off the last of the grimm. 

 

She paused in the middle of the street, bouncing from foot to foot as her aura sizzled just above her skin, gold wisps of its flickering in front of her face. She focused on them oddly, something pulling her forward from her gut. Like a string pulling. For a moment, her vision crossed and she could see the wisps weaving with violet shadows. A blink and they were gone, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw a terror bird dart down an alleyway. Well, Yang had always been one to follow her instincts. For better or for worse. 

 

She took off to the left towards the alley, following the grimm rather than just attacking it. It lead her further into the small town, the tugging string wrapped around her heart coiling tighter. Distantly she could hear the sounds of fighting, a voice that pulled the string around her heart so tightly she felt short of breath. A familiar calm resolve settled into her bones, reinforcing them with steel. The creature screeched and scrabbled around the corner, claws raking against the cobblestone road. 

 

Yang put on an extra burst of speed and followed on its heels, reaching out with her metal hand and grasping the short fan of feathers at its tail. With a yell she twisted her body, muscles screaming in protest as she whipped it off its feet and into a brick wall, quickly sending a flare into its dazed eye. The creature disintegrated, and Yang turned to the rest of the alley.

 

A dark pit yawned open wide in her stomach and threatened to swallow her, the string around her heart squeezing painfully. Her lilac eyes bled with red, meeting a pair of wide gold eyes that peered up from the ground. Blake’s cheek was pressed painfully into the snowlined cobblestones, her arms wrenched behind her body and locked in handcuffs. A pair of Atlesian guards had their knees pressed into her spine, and one of them had their foot on Blake’s black hair that spilled over the ground in an inky puddle. Her cat ears were folded back so far on her head that Yang couldn’t even see them.

 

One of them had a muzzle in his hands.

 

Yang didn’t remember much after that. When she blinked next, it was to the sound of her metal fist breaking one of the soldier’s helmets, her hair aflame and her breath spitting out pure steam. The Atlesian’s heads cracked together as they were bodily thrown across the alley, their auras breaking instantly from the release of energy in the single hit. She stood over Blake, huffing like a furious dragon, her hand shaking so violently her gauntlet was clicking rapidly.

 

“Yang, Yang I’m okay,” Blake said, watching the tension bleed out of her partner’s strong shoulders. She was shaking in the cold, the olive skin on her shoulder raw from being pressed into the frozen ground.  

 

Yang took several deep breaths, hissing more steam between her teeth until she managed to calm the rage in her heart. She quickly dropped to her knees, taking one of the handcuffs on Blake’s wrist and ripping it like a piece of bread with the last of her rage. Blake sighed as she sat up, pulling her arms forward, bones popping in relief. The remains of the handcuffs still dangled from her other wrist, and Yang gulped down the urge to scream. 

 

Instead she turned to the Atlesian guards who were groaning on the ground a good twelve feet away, her eyes still the color of blood. “Why were they  _arresting_ you?” She asked, her voice shaking and raw. 

 

“The faunus have been trying to get to Atlas, apparently.” Blake said, irritation hardening her words. “They saw me and thought I came with the grimm.”

 

“Well they’re fucking lucky I didn’t shoot them.” Yang hissed, her body giving off so much heat that Blake instinctively scooted closer for warmth. “What was with the _muzzle??_ Do they think they’re being subtle? Fuck - ugh Blake I’m sorry I’m so angry I just -”

 

“No, it’s okay.” She replied, laying a hand on Yang’s blazing skin. “I’m angry too.”

 

The string that was strangling Yang’s heart slowly began to loosen, making it easier to breathe. She took one last calming breath, slowly rising and helping Blake to her feet. She held on for a beat too long, meeting gold and finding the serenity she needed. 

 

“I still want to break them in half.” Yang said, though there was less bite in her words.

 

“I know.” Blake smiled softly, squeezing her hand. She glanced over at the soldiers with a look that could have rivaled Weiss’ frosty glare. “...But, another time. There are still people who need our help. We can’t risk losing them just because of these...assholes.”

 

Yang snorted despite herself, smiling a little. Blake’s hand slipped free of hers, her ears slowly unfolding from the top of her head. The faunus started leading the way back to the train wreck, hips swaying hypnotically. Yang jerked a bit, falling into step beside her partner.

 

“...Hey Blake.”

 

“Hm?”

 

“They were real… Atl-ass-holes.”

 

“...So we’re back to that, are we?”


	8. no way to escape this strife

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY THERE FRIENDS (Long note below, my bad lol)
> 
> UPDATE: So I've gone back through previous chapters and made some super minor adjustments, so if you wanna get the whole gist of the story, please check it out from Chapter 1! If you've been here since I dropped the first chapter and haven't looked back since, I'm gonna warn you now I changed the entire first chapter to better fit the voice of the story XD
> 
> I totally misjudged how hard it is to write for Blake. Like I love her to fuckin' pieces, she's my favorite character hands down. But writing for her - woof. Hard to do lol I rewrote this chapter like three times before it finally started to flow XD BUT I made it, and here you go!
> 
> Also, holy fuck guys the traction this fic has made??? There's almost 270 kudos?????? And 3000 hits???? 
> 
> I wanna thank all of y'all who've checked out my little RWBY project, even if you just made a passing glance, I really appreciate the attention and support! Much love to those who left comments and kudos, or kudos in comments, you literally set my soul on fire <3

* * *

 

Blake and Yang emerged from the alley into a warzone. Several citizens were huddled under the crumbling remains of homes, smoke and ash billowing into the sky from several buildings that had caught fire from the wreckage. The sounds of sobbing seemed omnipresent, filtering in from every direction. 

 

The grimm birds thrashed through Atlas soldiers like bulldozers, some falling to black dust from bullets and blades, others spreading blood over pristine white armor.

 

A child no older than six was stumbling through the snow towards one of the groups, streaks of red following their path from cuts on their little legs and arms. Blake saw a flash of glowing eyes from a ripped awning, and with a pulse of aura and panic she leapt for the child. 

 

The ghostly mist of a clone evaporated from where she once was. Her hand closed around the child’s fragile wrist as the terror bird leapt for them, ice flying from its beak in a piercing call. 

 

Blake felt Yang before she saw her, gold flecks spiraling in her narrowed vision as the world slowed in time. Instinctively knowing what to do, she tucked the child to her chest. A clone exploded in her place as she flipped backwards, catching a streak of flame rocketing past her with a war cry. The grimm’s beak clacked around empty air, followed by a violent crunch, shots firing where she had been. 

 

She twisted to land on her feet, holding a hyperventilating child to her body, hair tangled in the wind. She shushed them softly. “It’s okay sweetie, I got you.” 

 

They looked up at her with big watery eyes, lower lip trembling as they hiccuped and shuddered. Blake gave them a small reassuring smile, eyes darting up for the safest place to put them. She lingered on Yang as the blonde bounced from side to side. 

 

The brawler ducked and slid around the grimm like a fly, sending fiery bullets exploding along its feathered hide. It was larger than the others, its beak sharper and more jagged, layered in a thick sheets of icy armor. Instead of two eyes, it had four, and a full fan of ice on its head. Blake had never seen a grimm like it.

 

Out of her peripherals, a man from one of the buildings suddenly broke cover and bolted towards Blake. Her broken sword was in her hand in a heartbeat, smoothly transitioning to its gun form. Memories of brilliant red hair blurred her vision. 

 

“Sable!” He yelled, startling her.

 

The child in her arms began to squirm, frantically trying to look over their shoulder. She breathed out shakily, lowering her weapon and releasing the child. She kept a sharp eye out for smaller grimm,  her heart fluctuating unsteadily in her chest. Just a ghost of red, then. It still hadn’t completely sunk in that  _ he _ was gone.

 

The man sobbed in relief as Sable stumbled out of Blake’s arms. The man dropped into the snow and buried his face in the child's neck, shoulders shaking. The knot in Blake's chest loosened a bit.

 

She rose to her feet, quickly jogging to them. “Come on, it’s not safe yet. Stay in groups and try to keep each other calm.” 

 

“Th-thank you-!” The man whimpered, gathering his crying child and meeting Blake’s eyes. 

 

He hesitated at the sight of her ears, but seemed to steele himself. The tears on his face crystalized from the cold, he gave her a brief bow and ran back to his group. Blake stayed close behind until they were safe with the others, one ear cocked toward Yang.

 

She looked over the others, noticing a few more Atlesian ships swinging around the columns of smoke. One of them had streams of ribbons flowing behind it, but Blake only gave it a passing glance. More soldiers had dropped into the fray, a few taking up arms and charging towards the group of humans where Blake was. She quickly made her way over to Yang as a final shot rang out, black ash scattering and choking the air around Blake.

 

Yang looked for her immediately, shoulders relaxing as their eyes met. Blake smiled, Yang’s eyes crinkling in turn. 

 

“Guys!” 

 

Jaune sprinted towards them with shield and sword in hand, Oscar close on his heels. 

 

“Have you seen Ruby or Weiss?” Jaune asked worriedly.

 

“They were on the roof of the station, last I saw of em.” Yang replied, frowning.

 

Blake looked around the smoldering ruins of the town - derailed train lying in the snow with the awful presence of a dead, beached whale. Ren and Nora were specks in the distance, corralling a group of terror birds in a circle. The Altlesian soldiers had made protective circles around the surviving civilians, picking off grimm where they could, but they never seemed to stop coming. 

 

“We need to find them and get out of here,” Oscar said urgently, “There’s too many grimm for us to handle, even with the military here!”

 

“How did they even get here?” Blake murmured.

 

“I don’t know, none of the soldiers will stop to talk to me,” Jaune said with a frustrated grunt.

 

“How’re we gonna find Ruby and Weiss? They could be on the other side of the town by now,” Yang pointed out. “Knowing Ruby, she’d try to get to the civilians first, or at least get them to safety.”

 

“And wherever Ruby is, Weiss is sure to follow.”

 

The wind suddenly picked up, whipping through the streets and stinging Blake’s exposed shoulders. She needed to keep moving or she was going to freeze - even with her own personal space heater standing beside her. She backed up a bit, bouncing in place as an idea began to form.

 

“Jaune, crouch.” She said absently.

 

“What?”

 

“Crouch, and get ready to boost my aura.” Blake said firmly, one of her ears flicking. “We need a bird’s eye view.”

 

“Cat’s eye view.” Yang whispered, snickering. Blake whacked her shoulder for that one, rolling her eyes.

 

Jaune’s expression lit up with understanding. He quickly dropped to one knee, bracing his shield on his shoulder. Oscar and Yang backing up to give them space, Blake dancing back a few paces and giving one last check for grimm birds near them. 

 

Her aura hummed just over her skin with raw energy, heartbeat steady and strong in her chest. She sucked in a quick breath, and sprinted towards Jaune, flipping up. Both boots landed on the shield solidly, and Jaune’s aura flared with her own, escalated power surging into her.

 

He lifted her suddenly and she activated her semblance once, twice, exploding up and zigzagging through the air until she was at least eighty feet above it all. A single moment of suspense, wind whipping her hair up and around her head in long tendrils. She scanned the ground, counting at least six more groups of terror birds in the town, several Atlesian ships grounded on the outside of the town. 

 

At the end of the train, a swirl of rose petals danced with streaks of white and blue. 

 

Then, Blake was free falling. Calm and collected, she reached for her semblance to slow her momentum.

 

And found nothing. 

 

Panic seized in her chest, grasping and grasping but finding no aura, no semblance - as if it didn’t exist. A missing muscle. She twisted in the air, her voice exploding from her in panic.

 

_ “YANG!” _

 

Two shotguns burst beneath her, and her body impacted with gunpowder and sunshine. 

 

They fell together the rest of the way, but it wasn’t far. They landed in a solid stance, Yang’s semblance absorbing most of the impact. Blake’s breath trembled as it was released, finding her feet quickly. Her hands lingered on Yang’s ripped jacket, trying to hide the shake in them.

 

What the  _ fuck _ was that?

 

“Thanks,” She said softly.

 

“What happened? Did you run out of aura?” Yang asked, eyebrows pinched together. 

 

The color had drained from Blake’s face, her eyes darting from Yang’s concern to Jaune and Oscar who were running to them. 

 

“No,” She replied, “I should have been fine. But… I don’t know. Something happened, I couldn’t use my semblance.”

 

“Oh shit... Can you use it now?” 

 

Blake swallowed dryly, flexing her hands at her sides. She reached for her missing muscle, and leapt back. The vapor of her shadow copy dissipated from where she once stood, and relief crashed over her like a wave. Yang jogged over to her, joined by Jaune and Oscar.

 

“Are you okay Blake?” Oscar asked, hands twisting with his gloves. “We saw you fall - did something happen?”

 

Blake hesitated, then shook her head at him with a smile. “No, I’m fine. I just...mistimed it.”

 

Gold met worried lilac, and Blake gave a subtle shake of her head. Yang stared at her, then gave a quick but reluctant nod. 

 

Relieved, the faunus gave a convincing smile and pointed to where she’d seen red and blue. “Ruby and Weiss are that way. If we go now, we might be able to catch them before they move to a different section. The grimm are starting to die off, but there’s still a few flocks left.”

 

“Awesome, I’ll call Ren and Nora over,” Jaune said. “They should be done with those other grimm -”

 

There was a massive  _ crack _ of thunder in the distance, the ground shaking beneath their feet. A plume of pitch black darkness rose steadily behind them, the flock of grimm vaporized in a single hit. Jaune and Oscar looked at each other.

 

“Or, we could just wait for them to catch up.” Oscar suggested, smiling loosely.

 

Blake was preoccupied with herself, trapped in her mind with questions running rampant in her head more and more. Where did the grimm come from? Why were there so many? How did they get up to Atlas’ floating city? Why did her semblance just...disappear? Why did those soldiers try to arrest her? She knew Atlas was harsh with faunus, but this wasn’t right. There was too much paranoia. Too much panic. The grimm were increasing.

 

A warm hand pressed into her cold shoulder, and she instinctively dipped into the touch. Yang’s words were soft as she murmured to her, “I can feel you thinking too hard.”

 

Blake scoffed without thinking. Her ears flipped backwards in shame when she saw Yang’s slightly hurt expression.

 

“Hey,” Yang said gently, making a point to have direct eye contact. “Slow down. I know you wanna barrel forward with all of your questions, but  _ all _ of us want answers. Let us catch up with the others, and we can solve it together, okay?”

 

Blake exhaled slowly, feeling her heart calm in her chest. A small cord wrapped itself around her soul, gently tugging her into warm pools of pale purple. Her breath hitched and she nodded, forcing herself to break eye contact. 

 

“...You’re right.” She breathed, leaning into the warmth of her partner, basking in her smile “...You’re right.”


	9. soon the moon is bathed in black

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof sorry for the wait y'all! I had to do more outlining for the story, cause while I have 25 pages of notes, this entire thing with the train was completely unplanned LOL
> 
> Nevertheless, I'm looping it back around to shit I wanna get to, while with the added bonus of exploring how to describe RWBY fight scenes AND new grimm :D
> 
> Also, dude. Guys. There's almost... there's almost 300 kudos on this fic. What in the fhh- Wha - thank you???? Holy shit, welcome to all the new people who checked out my weird little story!? Thank you guys for showing so much love so freely?? I'm gonna tear up, this is so wild
> 
> Welcome to all, hope you enjoy this chapter! Honestly its one of my favorites so far :D Comments and kudos are So appreciated, I can't even tell you lol

* * *

 

“Iceflower!” Ruby called, slamming her scythe into the frozen ground blade first. 

 

Weiss didn’t even look back, her rapier slashing and spraying black vaporous ichor in a violent dance. With two fingers she pointed at Ruby and a glacial blue glyph sprung in front of her, revolving and humming with power. 

 

Ruby pulled the trigger, following up by throwing the bolt back and firing again. And again. And again. Icy shrapnel flew through sick black smoke as the grimm fell one by one. 

 

But for every two that fell, three more seemed to take their place.

 

“There’s too many!” Ruby stood, breath pushed through gritted teeth in a gust of white.

 

She quickly twisted her scythe from the ground and collapsed it. She hooked it to the small of her back as she started running to her partner. The grimm she’d been keeping at bay surged forward with a resounding cry, beady red eyes locked on her scarlet cloak like bulls in a ring. She felt the weight of the miniaturized lamp in her ammo pouch with more clarity.

 

Ahead of her Weiss pinged between hard light glyphs like a pinball, skidding to a stop with her sword plunged into the snow. The four eyed grimm facing her gave a dying wail, the wind carrying it away in a toxic cloud. Weiss pressed her forehead to the handle of her weapon, panting quietly as loose strands of hair clung to her sweat damp skin. She looked up at Ruby, jaw clenching as she reached for her, palm faced up like an offering.

 

The grimm’s sharp beaks snapping at her heels, Ruby put on a burst of speed and grabbed Weiss’ hand. In a blink she’d pulled her into a tornado of white and red rose petals. They rocketed out of the maze of broken homes and bodies, leaving behind a painted trail in their wake. 

 

They surged around a final corner just as Ruby’s cape untwined from Weiss. They came to an ungraceful stop just in front of their wrecked railcar. 

 

“We - we have to find out where they’re coming from!” Ruby gasped, planting her hands on her knees to breathe, knuckles cracked and bleeding from the biting cold. Her aura was siphoning bit by bit to close the small wounds.

 

“We won't be able to if the military keeps scattering them!" Weiss hissed, pink gradient petals trapped in her silver hair in an almost comical fashion.

 

"There's only two ways these things made it into Atlas." Ruby reasoned, her silver eyes snapping to the building behind Weiss. In a single motion she unfurled Crescent Rose halfway, sniping a burning red eye from the shadows. It fell back with a wail.

 

"Someone either brought them here, or they were already here to begin with. But -" 

 

Weiss inhaled sharply, her gaze flitting back towards the CCT tower in muted horror. 

 

"Again?” She whispered, “Are we too late?"

 

Ruby felt her heart lurch and sink in her chest, a shuddering breath passing her cold lips. She pressed the tip of her sniper into the brown snow, picking out one of the petals in Weiss' hair.

 

"Like I was saying, I don’t think they were brought here." She said softly, attempting a weak smile. "There would definitely be less of them. Y'know usually we have to worry about grimm outside the city following the negativity, but Atlas is floating so it can’t draw grimm directly to it. Unless...”

 

“Unless they came from somewhere in the rock.” Weiss murmured, eyes widening.

 

“Exactly!” Ruby grinned, pressing a pink petal into Weiss’ palm. She curled pale fingers around it, patting her hand gently. “We can fix this! We just gotta find out where the breach is.”

 

"...Should we find the others first?" Her blue eyes were swimming with a kaleidoscope of emotions, too many to decipher.

 

It hit Ruby then, just how much Weiss cared about Atlas. Even though she was so determined to leave, she still had pride placed in this city. In the tall glacial buildings and silver streets. She cared about its people, to an extent. Ruby didn't entirely understand it, but she knew it was important to Weiss. And if it was important to Weiss, it was important to her.

 

"We don't have time." Ruby said simply, watching her partner's shoulders dip in relief. “C’mon, let’s -” 

 

 _"Ruby!”_   

 

She whipped around so fast she nearly gave herself whiplash, eyes widening. “Yang?”

 

A flash of gold and leather was her only warning before Yang barrelled into Ruby, arms wrapping around her sister and squeezing the air from her. Ruby wheezed, flailing a bit before Yang released her. She felt the weight of her sister’s hand on her shoulder, lilac meeting silver.

 

“You okay?” She asked seriously.

 

Ruby nodded quickly, glancing at Weiss. “Y-yeah, I’m fine.”

 

“We’re glad you’re okay!” Nora said earnestly, waving her heavy metal grenade launcher with one hand as the others caught up.  "I was kinda scared when we were all split in the crash."

 

"Me too," Jaune said, armor clinking as he slowed beside them. "I tried calling everyone, but my scroll hasn't been working."

 

"Mine either." Ren said with a frown. "Thankfully we were all close by when we crashed."

 

Ruby chanced another glance at Weiss, noticing the anxiety written on her face. She stepped away from Yang, clearing her throat so they could hear her. “We'll figure out the scrolls in a minute. Right now we need to find where all these grimm are coming from, and close whatever's letting them into the town. Once we do that, the military can pick off what’s left.”

 

“I saw a few military ships headed northeast of here,” Blake said softly, glancing up at the sky. "They looked more...decorated than the others."

 

Weiss' grip on her rapier tightened, her voice slightly strained. "What kind of decoration?"

 

"...Ribbons, or flags, I couldn't tell which." 

 

Weiss looked eastward, swallowing dryly. "...If that's who I think it is, I believe this situation may be worse than we thought."

 

"Worse than this?" Nora asked incredulously, gesturing to the smouldering buildings and bodies lying in the snow. "How??"

 

As if on cue, the ground shook beneath their feet. For a brief second - her pulse suspended - Ruby thought the clouds were tilting, and rising. 

 

A strong hand grasped her upper arm as Yang supported her before she lost her balance. The world corrected itself.

 

The clouds were stationary, which meant Atlas definitely wasn't falling. But _something_ had moved the earth under their feet.

 

They all exchanged grave looks and moved as one. Darting off along the broken tracks, past the station.The scream of engines roared above their heads, military dropping in squad by squad. None of them gave the group of hunters and huntresses a second glance, ignoring them and marching deeper into the town. Gunfire spat around them, a building crumbling off to the side as the cries of citizens filtered through once more. 

 

It was utter chaos.

 

Throughout it all, Ruby had steadily gone numb. Her silver eyes were dull, her body just following instinct and training. Yang had taken up the lead, Weiss following beside her with just as much determination. Oscar and Jaune were next, Jaune adjusting his lengthy gait to give Oscar some help if need be. Ren and Nora kept up behind them.

 

But Ruby had trailed to the back, her muscles locked in mechanical motion. Survival urged her forward with each step, even though her boots felt as if they were lined with lead. The screams rang louder and louder in her ears, nearly drowned out by the quick wheezes of breath when she actually remembered to breathe. 

 

"..uby. Ruby!"

 

She snapped to attention, the screams fading with the flat look in her eyes. Blake had stayed by her side, her dark eyebrows furrowed in worry. "Are you okay?"

 

Ruby blinked a few times, before plastering on a shaky smile. "Y-yeah! Yeah, I'm fine Blake." She picked up her pace, though Blake matched her stride for stride.

 

"...Look, Ruby, I know you hold yourself to a high standard as team leader, but it’s okay to -" 

 

"Blake, I’m fine I swear! Just dandy!" 

 

Ruby bounded forward faster without waiting for a reply, a few red petals fluttering to the ground as she wove between her teammates towards the front. Ruby missed the frown Blake sent to her back, but she could still feel her worried gaze burning through her cloak. She chose to ignore it.

 

The train tracks beyond the town lead up in a curve that passed a massive outcropping of stone coated with at least three hundred feet of ice, something that was almost a mountain but not quite. The gleam of buildings lined the edge of its platou at heights not even Blake could reach. Weiss, maybe. She'd have to use a lot of glyphs though. That'd be fun to try.

 

 _Focus Ruby_.

 

At the base of the mountain, two military ships were docked on the outside of a half-built quarry. One sleek and polished with flags flapping from the wings as the wind picked up. The other was dark gray and clunky, the symbol of Atlas stamped on the wings and body in black.

 

A familiar trademarked snowflake hung in tatters from a banner above the quarry. Right near the base of the pit, a hole the size of a car had been opened up into the glacier layer.

 

The ground was completely cleared of snow as they drew nearer, talons and footprints tearing up the black soil beneath. Ruby, now leading the group, slowed to a stop at the lip of the construction. She noticed rapid gunfire sounding off in the distance, voices faint and untraceable on the wind.

 

The floor shook again, but Ruby's footing stayed firm as a crack spidered up the entire length of the glacier. A beat of silence, and the world seemed to hold its breath.

 

In a burst of chaos it splintered open, large pieces of frozen shrapnel flying out of the quarry and nearly braining Oscar if Jaune hadn't shielded him. Everyone but Yang had ducked. All business, Yang literally caught one out of the air before it hit her.

 

But she dropped it just as fast, taking a step back from the edge as fog rolled out from the gap. A dark shape stumbled from the miasma, growling low guttural sounds.

 

The creature emerged.

 

Its head nearly reached past the top of the bowl, sheets of ice sliding down its heavy form as it left the crumbling wall. A body similar to the terror birds, with the exception of a long whip-like tail and spines that lined its joints.

 

Skeletal fingers of bone arched over its rib cage and neck, two short wicked talons emerging from the ruined black feathers in its chest. Among the sheets of ice and rock falling to the quarry floor, Ruby made out the remains of spears, arrows, and even an old rusted sword jutting out from its thick black hide, inches from piercing its neck.

 

One, two, _three_ pairs of burning red eyes blinked open.

 

Ruby watched in horror as they slowly began to drip with crimson liquid, sliding over the jagged bone and ice that coated its head. The red tears fell free of its frozen jaw, but quickly turned black as it left the surface and sunk deep into the soil.

 

Seemingly locked in place by fear, the group watched as a small terror bird emerged beak first from the new black, tar-like pool. 

 

The ancient beast tilted its head back, and a seam split along the ice coating its face. Then, another. Like a grotesque flower unfurling from frost, its jaw dropped open, and a second followed. Rows of razor sharp teeth exposed themselves from the ice, yawning open with the most blood curdling scream any of them had ever heard from a single grimm. 

 

Ruby’s friends stumbled back away from the edge, but she remained rooted to the spot in awe and fear. Its six eyes rolled in their sockets towards her. In a cold shock to her nerves, she placed a hand over her ammo pouch where Jinn’s lamp rested.

 

Yang pulled her back from the edge as it stumbled towards their side of the quarry, each massive step creating a rumble beneath their feet. She pushed Ruby back, her friends forming a defensive circle around her. "This is really bad - guys we need a plan!"

 

Ruby pulled Crescent Rose free, heart slamming a horrible drum beat against her ribcage. She was too fixated on its eyes, too numb to everything. She could barely feel the cold metal of her weapon, her eyes glassy and wide.

 

"Hey!" A flash of white and blue, a pale pink scar and worried eyes replacing haunting red and bone. Ruby felt something soft and warm in her palm, and she glanced down.

 

Between her numb, shaking fingers, a wrinkled red and white rose petal. Weiss pulled her hands away, earnest and warm in her insistence. "Keep that safe for me, okay?"

 

Ruby sucked in a sharp breath, swallowing back the heat in her eyes and nodding. She carefully placed the petal in her ammo pouch with Jinn, heart slowing in her chest. She smiled her thanks to Weiss, and readied her scythe.

 

This would be different. She’d make sure of it.


	10. it starts with the unexpected loss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHEW its been a minute xD Thank you guys so much for your patience! Fight scenes have always been super hard for me, so I tried writing this thing like fifty times before I stuck with what I'm posting here :D
> 
> ALSO IMPORTANTE NOTE: In the edits I made for chapters 1 - 9, I added about 5000 more words. The plot is changing bit by bit, so I'd recommend going back and rereading the first few chapters to get the wholeness of this story :>
> 
> As always, I love and appreciate each and every one of your comments and kudos!! I'm honored to earn them, and I love talking to y'all <3 
> 
> Hope this chapter was worth the wait!

* * *

 

Weiss was worried.

 

There were plenty of things for her to worry about in the moment, but Ruby was at the forefront of her mind. She'd seemed distant since they'd met up with the others - distracted. 

 

Distractions were dangerous.

 

The massive grimm's maw lolled open, drool dripping from the first mouth and into the second, saliva rolling through the gaps between razor sharp teeth. It's long tail was thin and barbed, whipping side to side as it leveled three bleeding eyes with their party. 

 

"Keep it from leaving the pit! Weiss, Yang - Freezerburn!" Ruby called, snapping the ex-heiress from her thoughts. 

 

The command was almost foreign to her - it'd been nearly a year and a half since the last time they used it. The words sounded dusty, but her muscles remembered it well enough. Their group leapt back as one, leaving behind Weiss and Yang. She flipped her rapier down, sinking it into black soil as a solid sheet of ice spread out from the glowing runes etched in her blade. 

 

Yang shot a flare into the creature's eye, using the kickback to catapult herself into Weiss' range, then aimed another straight into the ice. A frosty cloud exploded around them, both teams scattering in the erupted fog. Smaller targets for a big monster.

 

The creature screamed as the flare hit its mark, ground rumbling and chunks of glacier falling as it stumbled into the quarry wall. It shook its head furiously, streaks of red falling to the ground. Two more terror birds emerged, their piercing cries  echoing from the pit. 

 

Bullets fired from Weiss' left, a flash of red, black, and green appearing through the mist. She quickly headed over to them - only to feel her aura crack and pain discharge throughout her spine. Stars burst in her vision as she was thrown clear from the fog, the creature's long tail sweeping clean through their cover.

 

_"Weiss!!"_ She faintly heard, before the ground rushed to meet her. 

 

She managed to throw out her hand for a gravity glyph, narrowly slowing her impact from fatal to painful. Her shoulder slammed into the hard soil and she rolled, hair tangling itself around her and tugging painfully against her scalp. She wheezed, the air squeezed from her in the impact. 

 

Barely sparing a moment to catch her breath, Weiss quickly got to her feet, vision swimming. Her hands flexed around empty air, realising her weapon was missing. Far off from the others, she could see their cover had been completely swept away from the grimm's tail.

 

The ground shook from where she stood as the creature struggled to get out of the pit. Its cries escalated in a heavy onslaught from Nora and Yang, while Jaune, Blake, and Ren killed the growing number of terror birds trying to free themselves from the quarry. 

 

Ruby was shooting at its eyes, rose petals flying in her wake as she zigzagged around its massive swinging head. There was something off though - none of her shots were doing very much, if any damage at all. Her head kept snapping up towards Weiss, her bullets flying a bit off the mark. 

 

Finally, Ruby twisted with a yell, swinging her scythe at its head - but the creature had been keeping tabs on her. Its head jerked unnaturally fast for something so large, catching Crescent Rose in its top jaw, the bottom jutting out and snapping at Ruby’s dangling legs.

 

Weiss started to run, but Yang was much closer. 

 

A streak of flaming gold crunched into white bone, the creature wailing out and dropping the weapon (and Ruby) to its feet. Yang gripped one of the icy spires of its crest with her metal hand, eyes blazing red as she punched the grimm square in the eye once, twice, before it threw her off furiously. She stuck the landing at the quarry’s edge and grabbed Nora’s outstretched forearm without missing a beat, whipping around and flinging her into the creature. The resulting crack of thunder shook the mountain, the glacier cracking apart even more.

 

“Weiss!” Oscar called, racing to meet her with her rapier clutched in his gloved hand. She took it gratefully, her heart settling in her chest as the familiar weight dropped into her palm. 

 

“Thank you,” She said quickly.

 

Her blue eyes narrowed as she pressed the trigger on her pommel, barrel clicking rapidly as it spun. She twirled the blade as the runes turned green, clocks ticking distantly in her ears as she used the last of her green dust cartridge. Oscar gasped as the fight in front of them began to slow, Nora’s expression frozen with grim determination in mid-swing, a flare spearing from Yang’s gauntlet. Weiss pointed above the creature with her free hand, twisting her wrist as a summoning glyph rotated to life on the wall of the mountain. 

 

Her large blue knight reached out from the glyph, pulling itself out and dropping onto the unsuspecting creature’s back. It raised its hands together as if wielding a weapon, swinging down as time sped up once more. The frosty blue greatsword materialised on its downswing, cutting deep through the large grimm’s armored back. Valiantly the knight continued to hack away at it, Yang’s flare and Nora’s hammer cracking into it as well.

 

Ruby had yet to emerge from the pit and Weiss’ heart clenching and her aura tugging from her chest. Weiss had to know if she was okay.

 

Suddenly, she blinked, and her vision was fishbowled - tinged blue at the edges and from a dizzying perspective. She glanced down, her metal fingers wrapped tightly around a sword larger than her. Her swing faltered, head snapping to the side as she caught a glimpse of red. Ruby was a million miles away on the floor of the quarry, her scythe winding around her in a deadly, beautiful dance of blades and rose petals. She was hacking away at the massive creature’s feet, but every cut she opened seemed to bleed rather than evaporate in smoke. 

 

The blood was black, dripping sluggishly down its legs from the open wounds and pooling at its feet in one large, tar-like puddle. 

 

Weiss caught a glimpse of bone peeking out from the pool in Ruby’s blind spot, and she reacted without thinking. She - her knight - jumped down, cutting off the four-eyed head of an emerging terror bird. Ruby jumped in surprise, silver eyes staring up at the knight in shock.

 

A voice like the scraping of metal on concrete emerged, sounding eerily like a growl from the bottom of a well. _“Thank me later.”_

 

Weiss blinked, and suddenly she was back in her own body. She lost her balance as she grew dizzy and nauseous from the perspective change. Oscar caught her taller frame on his shoulder, nearly buckling under her weight. His carmel green eyes were wide, freckled face so quietly young and innocent. She kind of hated Ozpin for ending up in such an innocent soul.

 

Straightening up as the dizzy spell passed, she gritted her teeth as her knight ducked beneath the long whipping tail of the grimm, narrowly avoiding the barbs on the end. Yang and Nora weren’t so lucky, both of them receiving a hit that flung them into one of the grounded aircrafts, collapsing the metal around them. Flashes of gold and pink flickered and vanished from the hole they’d made, Ren crying out wordlessly from across the battlefield. 

 

Ren broke away from the terror birds, sprinting full tilt to the collapsed ship where Nora and Yang had crashed. The terror birds were starting to flood the quarry in numbers they could barely keep up with. They were holding their ground, but Blake and Jaune were starting to wheeze for air, Ruby appearing at his side with her hair slicked back away from her eyes, pieces sticking to her flushed cheeks from sweat. He slammed his shield into a terror bird’s snapping beak, knocking it aside before it could land a hit on her, sword piercing up through its neck. 

 

Weiss and Oscar ran the rest of the way to their friends, her aura pulling her with each step as her knight parkoured off the side of the mountain and landed on the writhing grimm. It chipped off more ice from its hide, various ancient weapons frozen to its body cracking free and falling into the black pool by its feet. 

 

Weiss’ attention snapped to the ruined gunmetal gray plane as Yang and Nora appeared, her breath catching in her throat. Yang held Nora up shakily, setting her down as carefully as possible. Embedded in Nora’s side was a piece of thick metal shrapnel from the plane, her blood turning the pink fabric into a darker, more sinister color.

 

Ren made it to them in moments, taking Yang’s place quickly. Nora gave him a weak grin, her voice faint and sheepish as she said, "Oops?"

 

Yang stumbled down the side of the ship towards Weiss, palm clanging against the metal as she caught herself on its side. Lilac eyes scanned the quarry edge, spotting Blake as the faunus covered for Jaune and Ruby as much as she could, her collapsed sword spitting gunfire into the birds crawling over the edge of the pit.

 

“Yang are you okay??” Weiss asked worriedly, Oscar wheezing beside her as they stopped beside the brawler. 

 

“I’m good, I just need a second.” She replied breathlessly, gold aura flickering and dying like a car trying to start with a dead battery. She was already starting to walk back to the others, steps stuttering underneath her.

 

 Weiss grabbed her upper arm, feeling the ridges of hard, corded muscle beneath. “Yang your aura is completely gone, you need to give it a chance to recover.”

 

“They need help Weiss, I was already down too long.” The blonde replied desperately, trying to free herself from Weiss’ grip. The fact that she was struggling was indicative enough.

 

“I’ll cover for them,” Weiss said firmly, pulling her back and piercing her with a glare. “You stay and help Oscar guard Nora and Ren. I’ll send Jaune over when I get to them. Ruby, Blake, and I can hold them off until your aura recovers.”

 

Yang scowled, but after taking a quick glance at the others, she gave a reluctant nod. She relaxed, her left hand trembling at her side. Weiss gave a firm nod and checking briefly on Oscar who had slipped away to Nora and Ren. She brandished her rapier like a wand, a line of glyphs lighting up a path. 

 

“Weiss,” Yang said, flecks of gold shimmering over her hair and ripped clothes. “...Be careful.”

 

“I will.” She replied, her lips twitching into a soft smile before she took off along the path of glyphs. 

 

The scenery around her turned into a blur of blue gray stone and white snow, but her body was used to these speeds by now. The last glyph turned black, Weiss leaping up off of it and spearing a terror bird through its neck. She gracefully backflipped, landing daintily. To her left Blake and Ruby were shooting at the ancient grimm, weaving around to avoid the creature’s thrashing tail. In the time she’d taken to reach the battlefield once more, her blue knight had managed to expose patches of its grotesque scarred body from the ice. 

 

Jaune ran to her side, breath billowing visibly from his lips. “Weiss! Is Nora -” 

 

“She’s hurt. Badly." Weiss said, wasting no time. The barrel in her sword rotated once more at her side. "I've got this, you go to them. Yang might need a boost too."

 

Jaune hesitated, then nodded. He gave her a solemn nod, patting her shoulder. "Be safe."

 

Weiss resisted the urge to roll her eyes, shooing him away. "Who do you think I am?"

 

"Do you really want me to answer that?" Jaune surprised her with a smile that if she squinted, could almost have been a smirk.

 

Weiss huffed, flames coiling around her rapier as she strutted past him - though her hair was so tangled it wasn't much of an effect as she flipped it sassily. "Funny. Go on, they need you."

 

Jaune barked out a nervous laugh, quickly running off to his friends. Weiss turned her attention to her knight, her aura flaring as an archway of glyphs circled the ancient's head.

 

Ruby and Blake paused, glancing over to her. Ruby's expression lit up with relief, Blake's eyebrows narrowing. A terror bird crawled up to her side of the quarry, and Weiss flicked her sword, a wave of flames wrapping themselves around it. The smaller grimm fell back with a wail, but it was overshadowed severely by the enraged, nightmarish scream that the ancient released suddenly.

 

Her knight had slashed cleanly over its chest and body in rapid succession, her glyphs fading with each jump her knight made. Nearly all of the creature's icy armor was sinking into the growing tar pits by its feet, her knight ending its onslaught on the creature's back.

 

Except it didn't stay there for long. 

 

With a violent, unnatural twist of its bulbous body, the ancient grimm managed to sink its teeth into her construct's legs, one set of jaws for each leg. It whipped its head down, dragging her knight off its back and throwing it into the pool of black below. 

 

Upon contact, Weiss felt a pulse in her chest, pain rupturing from the core of her body. She lost her confident footing, her knees buckling beneath her as the knight let out a metallic scream from the pit. Negativity coiled forth from her soul in the form of black veins, crawling up through the vestiges of her pristine, pale skin. 

 

Thoughts wormed into her heart, spreading nausea and sickness. She hated this creature for harming her knight - she hated her team for being weak, they should have killed it by now - oh the black was burning, flooding into her eyes, her tongue was made of charcoal. Distantly she heard the screaming cease, her knight's chest caving in as the grimm stepped on it. Sinking it deeper into the tar. There were hands on her get it off _get it oFF -_

 

_"WEISS!!"_

 

Suddenly, light.

 

The burning increased, but the darkness was retreating. Its hold was faint, its taste still sour in her mouth - but she found solace in silver eyes. Reason.

 

She blinked rapidly, and cut off the connection between her and her construct, finding her lungs suddenly empty of air. The darkness had released, her knight dissolving into a million blue snowflakes. Released from corruption.

 

Weiss came back to Remnant with a heaving gasp, noticing the scenery was a bit different. They were crouched in the no man's land between the quarry and the two planes where the others were hiding, a smattering of pink rose petals tracing their path away from the collapsing quarry. Weiss zeroed in on the trembling, worried form of her partner, kneeling in front of her. She opened her mouth to speak, but Ruby engulfed her in a crushing hug, shoulders shaking.

 

"Please," She whispered brokenly, "Please don't leave me like that. Not like that. Not ever. Please."

 

Weiss exhaled slowly, reaching around Ruby's deep red cloak and clutching it. As the seconds ticked by in hours, her grip grew tighter and tighter on the fabric, the heady scent of roses causing her head to swim. She didn't realise how cold she was until Ruby pressed against her, their bodies melded from the waist and up. Weiss could hear quiet hiccups by her ear, her own emotions whiplashed and numb. Her thumb traced over Ruby's shoulder blade slowly, calming her without words.

 

Blake sprinted up to them, her gun clicking uselessly behind her as she used the last of her ammo. "Fuck," She hissed, ears flicking back. She met Weiss' gaze, intense worry flooding her expression. "You okay?"

 

Weiss gulped and nodded shakily, forcing herself to resurface from the warm bubble she'd been happily drowning in. She pulled back from Ruby, her hands falling naturally to her partner's shoulders. 

 

Hastily, her best friend wiped at her eyes, hiccupping, "S-sorry - sorry, that just - you really scared me, Weiss. Your eyes w-were...black."

 

Weiss swallowed dryly, still tasting soot in the back of her throat.

 

She croaked, "I'll be okay, Ruby. C'mon," and she stood, unsteadily pulling the silver-eyed girl up with her. 

 

"We should go regroup," Blake said, sheathing her broken sword as terror birds began to crawl up over the edge like a never ending hoard.

 

"Agreed." Ruby muttered, sucking in the last of her emotions sharply. She kept a hand on Weiss' waist to steady her, the warmth in her palm radiating through the ex-heiress's thin dress. "You good to run, Weiss?"

 

"Starting from a walk, probably." She replied honestly, still feeling a bit dizzy.

 

Blake and Ruby exchanged looks, something quiet passing between them.

 

"I'll walk with you, Ruby can cover us since she has ammo still." Blake said, ducking underneath Weiss' arm and taking most of her weight.

 

"I'm dizzy, not lame!" Weiss grumbled, though she conceded to the treatment with a simple, protective glare from Ruby.

 

Ruby swung her scythe out, aiming down to the quarry. She paused, making a confused noise.

 

Weiss and Blake glanced over their shoulders, just in time to see the ancient grimm leap into view to the plateaued edge. Its clawed feet scrabbled as the ground shook beneath its gargantuan weight, the edge collapsing beneath it. The creature screeched, falling back into the pit - but dread had sunk into Weiss' stomach.

 

If the ancient grimm could jump that high... it could get out.


	11. you're lookin' toothless

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOOHHH BOY guys I'm so sorry these updates are taking so long! School started and I started a new job, and I have like seven projects going all at once lol
> 
> I'm havin' a time - BUT the first arc is almost done!! One or two more chapters left, and then we get into the political gay as fuck bits!
> 
> Thank you guys for sticking with me this far, I'm honored to have your support and your kudos and constructive criticism - y'all are too too good to me T.T I hope this was worth the wait!
> 
> As always, comments and kudos are so so appreciated, and if y'all wanna scream at me about this fanfic you can find me at @sorryformycrimes on tumblr :> Come say hi!!

* * *

 

"Nora stop moving!" Jaune ordered helplessly, trying to hold down his teammate. He was trying to ease out the metal shard from Nora's side, but she was _not_ having it.

 

Ren was at her side, trying not to wince as his hand started to turn purple in her vice grip. His white pants were stained red at the knees.

 

"Stop trying to gently pull it out and just _do it_ already!" Nora barked, her flushed face screwed tight with pain.

 

Yang was stuck holding her legs down, fingers wrapped around Nora's ankles as the brawler valiantly tried to avoid glancing up her skirt. She could feel the static of Nora's semblance lifting her blonde mane from her shoulders, crackling with agitation. Briefly, she wondered if her metal arm would conduct lightning. 

 

"Nora if you don't sit still I _will_ knock you out. And not in a nice way." Yang said firmly.

 

Nora whined, reluctantly settling. Her skirt and armor were sticky with blood and sweat, but not enough to make her lose consciousness. Yet.

 

Jaune took a deep breath, gauntlets shaking as he wrapped his hand around the fragment once more. He took heed of Nora's words, and in one solid jerk, yanked the piece from her body. 

 

Nora screamed. Yang felt lightning course up into her body, rattling teeth in her skull and igniting the metal ring around her bicep. She was no stranger to burning, but holy _fuck_ that hurt. For a moment she swore she could even feel a spark in every follicle of her hair. 

 

Jaune immediately flung the metal piece into the empty cockpit, laying his hands over Nora's side as blood welled up and sunk into her clothes. His aura flickered to life around him, white pouring into the wound and sealing it. 

 

Yang struggled to relax the muscles in her hand from Nora's ankles. Finally she released one hand, flexing her pale fingers. Her metal arm groaned in protest, gears clicking uselessly beneath the ripped armored plates. She groaned in frustration, pulling the yellow fingers from Nora's skin one by one. 

 

Her hand jerked and twitched as she tried to recalibrate it, the prosthetic taking one, two, five tries to touch her index to her thumb. She slapped her palm against the yellow forearm, like one would do to a broken vending machine.

 

It whirred a bit faster, her middle finger reaching her thumb. Then her ring finger. One by one, she managed the exercise, until there was only a small delay.

 

Yang glanced up, taking in Nora's half-masted stare into nothingness, and the sweat on Jaune's brow. Ren was quiet as ever, but the concern was there, written in worry lines. 

 

"Is she gonna be okay?" She asked finally, her metal hand curled into a fist.

 

"I think so. I might not be able to heal all of it like with Weiss at Haven, but it's enough to stabilize her." Jaune said, concentrating on the wound. 

 

She nodded with a relieved sigh, shaking off the last of the lightning. She stood, feeling surprisingly stronger than before. Her aura must've absorbed most of it. 

 

"Yang!" Oscar called from outside the ruined ship, his voice tight with panic.

 

Immediately, she ran to the hole her and Nora had punched into the hull, looking out. Oscar had opted to try and get into the second ship with ribbons on the wings, instead of staying with Nora. He wasn't very good with blood. He stood a good twenty feet away, head turned towards the quarry and his eyes wide as saucers.

 

A tornado of red and pink petals swirled around two crouched figures, a third figure in the distance keeping a swarm of grimm at bay. Yang immediately knew something was wrong. Ruby and Weiss wouldn't have left the quarry for Blake to handle alone. She couldn't see what they were doing, but she didn't care. 

 

Her aura was charged enough, she needed to go in.

 

Yang turned back to the rest of JNR, biting the inside of her cheek. "Will you be okay if I go?"

 

Ren met her lilac gaze first, neon pink irises tired, but filled with resolve.

 

"We can protect each other." He said softly, squeezing Nora's limp hand with numb fingers. "Go. We will catch up."

 

Yang swallowed the gratitude on her tongue. 

 

Jaune looked up and nodded at her, smiling grimly. "We're right behind you guys, don't worry."

 

"You'd better be." Yang replied, recovering. She gave them a shaky grin. "Better make it a good entrance though."

 

Halfway awake, Nora gave a pained laugh. She grinned wide, orange hair sticking to her cheeks. "Have you met us?"

 

Yang snorted, one hand on the lip of her exit. "Touché." Without another word she vaulted from the hole, landing in a crouch. Snow crunched under her boots as she stood, saluting Oscar. "Take care of them, farm boy."

 

Oscar gave a serious nod, holding his cane tightly at his side. Yang broke into a sprint towards her sister. They were standing now, Weiss shaking a bit on her feet but still up. Blake had joined them, all of their heads turned towards the quarry. Yang was still a ways away, but it drew her gaze to the pit nonetheless. She met the gaze of the beast, its three eyes widening over the edge. Yang's feet stuttered, nearly tripping as fear gripped her heart in cold claws. The eyes disappeared.

 

She forced herself to keep going, breath pushing out clouds of heat as her boots dug into the snow. Only moments later, the creature suddenly leapt onto the edge, its head slamming into the ground to anchor itself. The ground shook like the entire island was falling. Heavy back feet clawed and ripped away chunks of stone as the rest of its bulbous body heaved over the edge, its frustrated roar shaking the quarry. Dozens of new terror birds had gathered at the top, a few peeling off from the main group and swarming towards the town. 

  


Yang skidded to a stop next to Blake, her left hand shaking like a leaf as they watched helplessly. The others had grave looks on their faces, and Weiss seemed more shaken than usual. Her pale hand kept drifting to her chest, tapping over her heart as if knocking on a door. Ruby was practically glued to her side, looking between her and the monster with concern.

 

A violet shadow whispered at the edges of Yang's vision, Blake's hand gently grasping hers.

 

"What happened, why’d you back off?” Yang asked, the touch grounding her.

 

“I - my knight fell into one of the black pools.” Weiss said, her voice scratchy and faint. She seemed distant, as if she was struggling to come back to reality. “It… I don’t know what happened. One minute I was fighting, and the next I was...burning. I couldn’t see or hear anything, until Ruby used her eyes.”

 

“They just went off on their own,” Ruby added, her hand reaching for Weiss’ unconsciously. 

 

Weiss pulled away ever so slightly, shaking her head with a quick jerk. 

 

Yang watched Ruby shrink into herself, hair covering her eyes. Sisterly instincts on fire, she pulled away from Blake with a light squeeze and placed a solid, supportive hand on Ruby’s shoulder. 

 

“We don’t have a lot of time before that thing is on its feet. We can figure out this weird shit later.” Yang said, looking between Weiss and Ruby. 

 

Ruby sucked in a sharp breath, straightening up quickly with a new fire lit in her eyes. She nodded, Yang’s hand slipping from her shoulder. “Yang’s right, we have to stop that thing from going to the town.”

 

“My knight took off most of the ice on its body,” Said Weiss softly, steadily pulling herself together. “Its hide is tough, but it’ll be more vulnerable than before.”

 

“I’m out of ammo.” Blake said, lifting her broken half of a sword. “But I still have plenty of aura left.”

 

Ruby paused, thinking deeply.

 

Yang knew that look on her face. It was the same look she had when she first sketched the design for Crescent Rose, and when she came up with their team attacks.

 

“I have an idea.” She said with a growing grin.

 

Ruby began explaining her epiphany with exaggerated motions, and Blake cocked her hip to the side. Her ears were at full attention, swiveled towards the red-cloaked girl as a curious eyebrow hiked up to her hairline. 

 

Yang’s attention drifted to Weiss, the pale girl staring off at the massive creature struggling to find its balance on the frozen ground. Finally free from the pit, it rose like a mountain, ice chunks and broken weapons falling to its feet. More black ichor dripped down its legs, and Weiss’ gaze seemed to linger on the droplets staining the black snow.

 

Yang tapped her arm, startling her. Dark lilac clashed with pale blue, worried and caring. “Stay close to me, okay?”

 

Weiss seemed lost, her hand drifting over her chest and tapping. It was clear that she wasn’t thinking as she did it, but eventually clarity returned to her. She nodded, hesitant. 

 

“Yang, I - can you keep an eye on me?” She asked quietly, her voice strained as if it was the hardest thing to ask. “That - that pool did something to me. There’s...echoes of it. Here.” She gestured to her temple. “...I don’t quite trust myself right now.”

 

Yang’s heart clenched with pride, a smile lighting up her face despite the grim situation. It was probably weird to be proud of someone other than her sister, but Yang didn’t give two shits. She knew how hard it was for her to ask for help. Hell, Yang _still_ couldn’t ask for help. It was hard not to crush the girl into a hug then and there. 

 

“I’ve always got your back, Ice Queen.” Yang said warmly, nudging her.

 

She managed to coax a small smile from Weiss, widening the grin on her own face. 

 

Blake’s disbelieving laughter drew them back into the conversation, Ruby grinning wide.

 

“Okay, plan set. Are we ready?” She said, her silver eyes lingering on Weiss worriedly. 

 

Yang wrapped an arm around Weiss’ thin shoulders, her grin ear-splitting. “Ready as we’ll ever be!”

 

Weiss nodded firmly, though she attempted a small smile for Ruby’s sake. The silver eyed girl grinned back, an extra pep in her step as she unfurled Crescent Rose fully. 

 

Yang cracked her knuckles, releasing Weiss and lining up with her sister. She lowered herself into her boxer’s stance, glancing at their positions. Ruby stood a few feet away, her dented scythe blade kissing the top of her ripped cloak. Weiss was ahead of Yang, standing just off to the right with her rapier brandished. A black glyph appeared beneath hers and Yang’s feet. Yang could feel the pull of dust, gravity shifting around her.

 

Blake was to Ruby’s left, her broken sword sheathed and her lips quirked in a small but confident smirk. Yang’s gaze lingered on her for a beat longer than necessary, that sly smirk burning deep and settling low in her belly. Blake’s eyes flitted to hers, a canine peeking out beneath her lips. The gold of her iris disappeared behind a wink, and Yang’s hair suddenly caught on fire, melting the snow around her feet. Blake disguised her laugh behind a cough, Yang’s face burning with heat as she forced herself to focus on the beast.

 

Across the barren land, the monster had recovered. Its six bleeding eyes locked onto their group, long tail drifting behind it like a whip inlaid with bone fragments. 

 

“Teeth, tail, eyes.” Ruby said, her eyes gleaming like the glint of a knife. “On my mark.”

 

“One.” 

 

The creature let loose a scream that parted its second jaw, pebbles jumping and bouncing off the exposed ground. The thing was absolutely terrifying, but Yang couldn’t dampen the excitement rising in her chest. 

 

Grimm were easy to deal with, there was no question of right or wrong with them. They were the dark, and Yang's friends were the light.

 

“Two.”  


Red rose petals began to drift across Yang’s vision without a breeze - as if the whole world had sucked in a breath, and held it for them. 

 

The creature started to charge.

 

_“Now!”_

 

With a crack of her rifle, Ruby and Blake disappeared in a swirling maelstrom of deep red ribbons, shadows trailing from their path. Yang swore she could see multiple shadows breaking off as they shot away, but Weiss’ glyphs were moving faster beneath her feet. She could feel the power humming through her body, blood singing louder in her ears.

 

A massive thud shook the earth as the creature’s feet were swept out from beneath it, Ruby’s blade biting into its weak ankles. The wail it released nearly made Yang’s ears bleed. Ahead, Weiss’ entire body locked up as if petrified. 

 

“Weiss!” Yang yelled, heart jumping in her throat. Her eyes were wide as she cocked her gauntlet. “It’s down, we have to go!”

 

The ex-heiress shook her head to clear it, glancing back at Yang. The brawler felt the glyph shudder, and suddenly they were zipping over the snow as if it wasn’t even there. She stumbled a bit before finding her footing, following the tail of Weiss’ fluttering silver hair. She hazarded a glance at Blake and Ruby.

 

The pair had split as soon as the beast came into range. They did their best to keep its head preoccupied as the massive body writhed over the stained snow. Blake was darting in and out of its two jaws in a deadly game of keep away, her ears flat on her head and expression screwed in pain. The screeching was deafening - Yang mourned for her partner's future hearing loss. Ruby had taken up the other side, zipping around in a blur and trying to pierce a bullet into one of its many eyes.

 

But even then, it was all just a distraction.

 

Yang had to pull Weiss down in mid-stride as its tail lashed over their heads, spikes howling against the cold air like a banshee. Weiss hissed a breath through her clenched teeth, her wrist twisting and sheer sleeves ripping from the motion.

 

"Hit it!" She ordered, a black glyph bursting to life beneath Yang's boots.

 

Yang crouched automatically, drawing her fist back and punching at the ground. The glyph flickered to red and released, her shotgun firing and propelling her across the divide at twice the speed. Fire coursed through her veins, her hair lighting up with pure sunlight. She met three wide red eyes with crimson in her own, and threw her entire body into its white mask.

 

She felt her entire skeleton shiver with the impact, her metal fist crunching into its face like a falling meteor. Its head bounced off the ground, one of its jaws dislocating with a stunned gurgle. Yang narrowly avoided the second set of jaws, stumbling down its crying face and catching herself against a cool, blue glyph. 

 

Red rose petals blasted beneath her as Ruby took her chance and teleported to the whipping tail. She swung her scythe in a deadly arc, catching the tail at the base. With a yell and a finger squeezing the trigger, Crescent Rose sheared through thick black hide...

 

Only halfway.

 

Yang's muscles were drained, exhaustion bleeding from her pores as she scrambled up onto Weiss' platform - and promptly found it shattered beneath her as the flailing tail slammed into her like a bad game of whack-a-mole. She created an entire crater in the soil as her aura shattered, leaving her at least three feet deep into dirt and mush. 

 

She saw her dented yellow knuckles shudder, grasping desperately for the frosty blue sky as her vision tunneled. The last thing she heard was the beast howling, unearthly and low.


	12. this time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW It's been a hot second!! I'm so sorry it's been so long, school and work and life have been kicking my ASS y'all. Adulting is hard lol
> 
> How've you guys been?? I wanna be able to talk to y'all more cause you're all such super sweet people, and I love responding to comments on this fic! So if you wanna holler at me, visit my tumblr @sorryformycrimes OR you can check out my new Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/ddullahan. I'd really appreciate it if you dropped by and said hi <3
> 
> Enough about me tho, what about all this cool RWBY shit coming out??? I'm waiting for the DC comics to finish the first 5 volumes before buying them, but holy fuck I've seen screenshots and I'm in LOVE. Baby Ruby and Yang need to be protected at all fucking cost. I'd kill Adam on sight if he had screen time.
> 
> Sidenote, this chapter marks the end of the first Arc of Atlas Shrouded!! Holy shit y'all we're so far in! As always, comments and kudos are appreciated, adored, cherished, I love you all to pieces thank you for your patience <3

* * *

 

Blake swore she felt the moment Yang's aura broke. She glanced at the hole Yang was lying in, the tips of her metal fingers visible just over the edge and curled towards the sky. She heard her own blood roaring in her ears, embers of gold flickering in and out of her peripherals - and then Weiss was over the hole, hauling Yang out by her torn jacket with a kind of desperation Blake had never seen before. Despite how thin Weiss was, years of training had given her a subtle strength that was easy to forget. She tugged Yang free, her curtain of gold hair dull and dirty as Weiss slung the metal arm around her shoulders.

 

She made direct eye contact with Blake, piercing blue wide and shaking. Blake's soul rattled with fear and relief as glyph popped up beneath their feet, and Weiss disappeared, taking their unconscious teammate with her.

 

Blake swallowed down her fear and worry, placing her trust in Weiss. She drew the broken half of her sword, turning to face the nose of the behemoth.

 

Ruby was tugging frantically at her scythe, trying to dodge the black sludge sputtering from the deep cut. Her body rag-dolled as the tail flung her side to side, but she held on with the stubbornness of a boarbatusk. The monster's dislocated bottom jaw sagged grotesquely from its maw, its top jaw lagging. Its red eyes were unfocused.

 

Blake knew she had very little options, and very little time to choose. Already more terror birds were crawling out from the pooling sludge, only the tips of their beaks appearing as the tar had yet to spread wide enough to fit their bulbous bodies.

 

She had to stick to the plan.

 

"Ruby get ready!" She yelled, backing up a few feet. "It's not gonna be happy when I do this!"

 

 _"O-okaaaayyy!"_ Ruby yelped, clinging to Crescent Rose for dear life.

 

Flipping the handle of Gambol to where the broken blade pointed down, a stillness washed over her. The calm of battle, reaching the eye of the storm. One, two, a clone exploded from her feet as she leaped, flinging her up and up.

 

She glared down at her target, clarity slowly returning to the beast's six eyes. Three of them on one side widened, each one easily twice the size of her hand as it spotted her above its face. Her ears pinned back against her head, and she was falling. The surroundings turned into a blur, gravity pulling her faster and faster. She flipped forward feet first, and activated her semblance once more. The clone pushed off her back and evaporated, sending her down faster. She braced for impact.

 

With a sickening _CRUNCH_ , the heel of her boot connected into the socket of its top jaw, and completely knocked it out of place. The creature jerked so suddenly that Blake couldn't find purchase to leap off, her heel slipping on tar and landing her directly into the creature's putrid lower maw.

 

Thankfully, _thankfully,_ the jaws were useless when dislocated - but the scream it released made her faunus ears (and human ears) pop painfully, a sharp ringing piercing her temples. Blood dripped down the sides of her neck as she threw her body forward to avoid falling down its throat. Gambol pierced the beast's tongue to keep her close to the front as its head thrashed wildly, her thinning aura protecting her exposed skin from snagging and ripping here and there on serrated teeth. Faintly she heard Ruby scream her name, coming through as if spoken through a screen or pillow.

 

She felt a hand grip her wrist, and suddenly the stench of ancient grimm washed from her nose, the thick smell of roses engulfing her. She was moving so fast she could barely comprehend it, breath stalling in her lungs, ears still ringing.

 

They stopped a safe distance away, Blake tumbling from the red spiral in a rare moment of gracelessness, feeling a bit sick. Her feline ears were flat against her skull, and she could _feel_ every pulse of blood in her head. Ruby was trying to talk to her, but all she heard was that piercing frequency, Ruby’s high pitched voice muffled and distorted. 

 

Blake staggered to her feet, pointing at her ears and shaking her head with a wince. Her own voice reverberated through her chest, too loud and too quiet all at once. "I can't hear you, Ruby, that thing damaged my ears."

 

She didn't need to be able to read lips to understand Ruby's short, vehement, _"Shit_ . _"_

 

Blake glanced back at the creature, thrashing in pain as it tried to use what remained of its tail to get its feet underneath it. The separated whip-like barbs lay a few feet away, slowly disintegrating in a toxic black cloud. Ruby had Crescent Rose back on her hip, the red paint chipped and splattered with smoking goop. 

 

A bit away, Weiss was kneeling over Yang, patting her cheek to get her to wake up. Blake took note of how tangled and disheveled they all seemed, clothes ripped in several places as the cold wind nipped at their exposed skin. Ruby was out of breath and distracted, Yang was unconscious, and Weiss… well. Blake didn't even know.

 

She stepped towards the pair, but halted in her tracks. They had to keep whittling away at this monster. The lives of innocents depended on it and Blake was torn. She took one longing glance at Yang, trying to take comfort in Weiss' attentiveness.

 

"You said teeth, tail, eyes, right?" She asked, turning back to Ruby.

 

Her leader nodded slowly, glaring at the creature's flailing body. It was trying to rock itself back to its feet now, much like a fat pigeon with too short wings. It would have been comical, if Blake wasn't so annoyed that it was still alive.

 

Ruby seemed to be in the same vein of annoyance, unfurling Crescent Rose and checking her ammo. 

 

"How many do you have?" Blake asked, wincing at the volume of her own voice in her head.

 

Ruby held up six fingers, giving a mirror of Yang's grin as she knocked back a bolt and slammed the blade into the black soil. The breeze picked up behind them, Ruby's cloak fluttered past her ankles. Both eyes open as she gazed down the scope, her shoulder caught the recoil as she sniped a bleeding eye, immediately pulling the next bullet into the chamber. Two, three. All perfect shots with minor adjustments.

 

Blake was almost glad she couldn't hear, because apparently the noise was so loud it woke Yang up. She saw embers flicker in her peripherals, heart tugging with the flash of gold movement. She turned to look, and found lilac eyes already locked on her. Her heart stuttered in relief, pulse pounding at her temples. She felt the vibrations of Ruby's rifle through her boots, but she couldn't look away. Neither could Yang, it seemed.

 

Weiss broke their staring contest, jumping up and looking at the sky with her mouth ajar. Immediately their eyes snapped up, expecting the worst.

 

Blake never thought she'd be so relieved to see an Atlas military ship. Four ribbons from each wing whipped in the winds as the craft hovered above them. With the way the engines kicked up the wet soil and slush the sound had to be deafening, but she could only feel the dull roar pressing against her ears. Blake squinted, spotting a flash of green in the window.

 

She let out an incredulous laugh as the ground shuddered from Ruby's final shot. Oscar waved down at them cheerfully from the cracked window, Ren seated beside him at the console. Jaune was by his side, sitting down with a pale glisten to his face, though his smile was as broad as ever. Nora wasn't in the window, but Blake had a feeling she was behind the large guns that popped out from the ship's belly.

 

Blake wanted to collapse with exhaustion as powerful, muffled gunfire spat out and raked across the creature's thick hide. Stray red bullets caught the newly emerging terror birds around it, flames engulfing them instantly.

 

Ruby stood up with her scythe still stuck in the ground, jumping on her toes and cheering as the onslaught sent sprays of fire and black ichor all across the snow. Pressure built in Blake's ears as the creature's cries grew louder and louder - and then began to peter out. Blinded, grounded, and defenseless, the angry red gleam of its eyes began to fade. Pale red, to white. The body twitched a few more times, and fell completely still. 

 

Black smoke began to rise from its form, though the pools remained where they were, their shiny black surfaces deceptively calm.

 

Blake's legs finally gave out beneath her as Yang and Weiss ran to her and Ruby, Gambol clattering to the ground beside her. Yang nearly collapsed beside her, gasping visibly as her calloused hand found Blake's and squeezed.

 

Blake watched her lips move, her lilac eyes darting over her and lingering on the streaks of blood down her neck. She was inaudible, but Blake felt her worry as if it was tangible. _"You okay?"_

 

Blake nodded, touching one of her human ears. "My hearing's a bit shot, but I'm okay. Promise."

 

Yang squeezed her hand again, and Blake shifted closer. She pressed her cheek into Yang's shoulder, the leather shredded to pieces and smelling of sweat and gunpowder.

 

"Well if we didn't need a shopping trip before, we definitely need one now." Blake mumbled, eyes closing for a moment. She felt Yang's body shake with a laugh, warmth sinking into her skin like she was sunbathing on a cool day. It reminded her briefly of summers spent in Menagerie; of sleepy afternoons and the tang of salt in the air. Her eyes slipped closed, melting against Yang’s side.

 

When Blake stirred from her doze, her hearing had improved somewhat. She could hear the soft murmurs of her teammates, picking up words here and there, though it was still faint.

 

"That’s my sister’s ship, Winter should have been back for it by now." Weiss murmured, her voice shaky. "It's been almost an hour since we killed the thing, I'm surprised there aren't more military over here."

 

"I saw ships leaving the town earlier," Jaune said from behind Blake's shoulder. "Maybe they killed off the rest of the grimm? Or maybe they're evacuating everyone?"

 

"Even so, someone should have been here to see what the commotion was, _at least_." Weiss insisted.

 

"Weiss has a point," Ruby said, closer than Blake was expecting. "There should be more military here. Why are they ignoring the giant cloud of grimm dust?”

 

"Maybe someone told them to." Blake rasped, blinking lazily as Yang jolted beneath her, surprised.

 

"Oh you're awake!" Ruby said cheerfully, sitting in the mush without a care for the mud on her skirt. 

 

Weiss sat beside her, legs tucked neatly beneath her and her hair untangled by some bullshit Schnee witchcraft. She had dark circles blooming under her eyes, stress set deep between her shoulder blades. Ruby kept looking at her eyes, as if expecting to see black where blue gleamed. Blake took an extra second to scan over Weiss, noting that other than exhaustion, she seemed less shaky than before. 

 

Nora was fast asleep with her head in Ren’s lap, his fingers carding gently through her hair. Her skirt was a horrifying mess of blood and dirt, her armor stained and crusted red in some areas. But, she was breathing easily, her expression slack as soft snores left her parted lips. 

 

Blake had to sit up and twist around to see Jaune, but he seemed relatively unscathed, if a bit pale. Oscar sat a little ways away, his eyes distant as he looked off in the direction of the town, the buildings still sporting small columns of black smoke. Beyond their little group huddle, the ancient grimm was still dissolving. Only half of its body was gone, swords and weapons still stuck in its feathered shoulders and head.

 

“Why would someone tell them to stay away?” Jaune murmured, rubbing his chin.

 

Blake had a bit of an idea, her gold eyes drifting to Weiss pointedly. The ex-heiress noticed and stress realigned her shoulders, as if a bar had been stuck down her spine. Her expression hardened, a rare, cold anger in her eyes.  

 

“...My father has always made it a point to keep any mining off of Atlas. I have no idea why he chose to dig a quarry so close to the Silver City.”

 

“Silver City?” Ruby murmured, confused.

 

“The main part of Atlas that surrounds the CCT tower.” Weiss replied, sighing heavily. “It’s called the Silver City by locals because of the type of silvery dust-infused metal used in the towers and streets. On a more… arrogant level, it’s also known for housing the wealthy and elite.”

 

“Hopefully the office should hold more information.” Weiss continued, slowly shifting to her feet and wincing at the pull of her stiff muscles. She pointed to the small, slightly caved in building behind the hole-y hull of the gray plane. “The benefits of the military staying away means there’s no one to prevent us from breaking into it.”

 

“I can’t tell if this is Rebel Weiss or Arsonist Weiss talking.” Yang murmured by Blake’s ear. Blake suppressed a laugh.

 

The rest of their group groaned and rose to their feet reluctantly. Ren woke up Nora (somehow); the two of them clearly exhausted and drained. Jaune hesitated as he stood, looking over his team. “...Actually, I think it’d be best if Nora, Ren, and me all stayed by the ship. Just in case someone does come by, you know?”

 

Nora groaned, leaning heavily into Ren’s side. “I’m _fiiiine_ Jaune, You don’t have to worry about me.”

 

“Nora you still have some internal damage.” Jaune said gently, supporting her other side so Ren didn’t collapse beneath the dead weight of his girlfriend. “C’mon, better safe than sorry.”

 

“You’re such a mother.” Nora grumbled, conceding.

 

Ren shook his head fondly, gently lowering her back down. Blake’s body creaked in protest as Yang shifted, forcing her to sit up. She noticed how Yang pressed her palm into her side, her breathing slightly labored as she moved over to Nora and offered her a closed fist. “You can help us break the law another time.”

 

“I’m taking that debt.” Nora grinned, bumping her knuckles into Yang’s. “Payment’s due when I’m no longer grounded.”

 

“I’m not a mother!” Jaune protested.

 

“You do have some paternal qualities, Jaune.” Ren said, a hint of amusement in his voice.

 

“Yeah, _paternal_.”

 

“But I’ve also seen you in my apron.”

 

“Ren, whose side are you on.”

 

Blake’s hand gently brushed against the small of Yang’s muscled back, the brawler’s posture suddenly correcting itself from surprise. Blake tried not to think of the heat burning through her frozen fingers, unable to stop herself from sinking a bit into Yang’s side as she spoke to the trio. “Call us if you need anything.”

 

“We will.” Ren said softly. 

 

Oscar, Ruby and Weiss had already started towards the office, Ruby talking to Weiss with worry pinching her face. Blake frowned, glancing at Yang as her partner tried not to wince with each step. 

 

“Did you hurt your ribs?” Blake asked, forgetting her own aches.

 

“Just cracked ‘em I think.” Yang replied, wincing a little as her side twinged. “I’ll be fine.”

 

"It's okay not to be fine."

 

"I know, I know. But if you want to make me stay behind, my debt is much higher to pay."

 

"Oh really?" Blake couldn't help the flirt in her tone, heat spiking under her palm. "What's your price?"

 

"You wouldn't wanna pay it, it's too steep." Yang said confidently.

 

Blake tilted her chin, staring at Yang through her dark eyelashes. They matched stares, their steps slowing in sync. A breath, a challenge. Red started to bloom across Yang's freckled nose like a bleeding sunset. 

 

Blake smirked. 

 

"Try me." She said, low and quiet.

 

Yang visibly swallowed, her pupils expanding and her steps stuttering to a halt. Blake took note, her smile crooked just enough to seem teasing, even as her heart started beating hard in her chest. Moments passed… Yang still hadn't responded.

 

Her body was angling closer and closer to Blake’s though, and she knew where that went. The faunus’ heart gave an anxious jump, kicking her ribs and snapping her free of whatever spell they’d cast over each other. She stepped away, trying to remember how to breathe.

 

“Better catch up with the others.” She said breathlessly, the burn in her cheeks definitely not from the cold. 

 

“Y..yeah,” Yang shook her head. She looked at the distance between them and frowned.

 

Blake hesitated, braving past the stutter in her pulse and lacing her fingers with Yang’s, gently tugging her over the gap. She lifting onto her toes and pressed her cold lips - a butterfly’s kiss really - ghosting over the blazing surface of Yang’s cheek. 

 

“Just so you know, I think you’re worth everything I have.” Blake said softly, glancing at their fingers, and the yellow metal contrasting her own pale skin.

 

Her hearing was clearer now, her feline ears twitching at Yang’s sharp inhale above her head. Her grip tightened in Blake’s hand, the dented knuckles and usually steady metal shaking slightly.

 

Yang’s voice cracked between them like a gunshot, nearly gasped, “Blake, I -”

 

“Guys what’s the hold up??” Ruby called, waving at them wildly from the door of the office.

 

Their eyes met, a mix of frustration and amusement. Blake squeezed, swinging their joined hands gently. "What's that saying.. Good things come to those who wait?"

 

"The wait will kill me at this rate," Yang grumbled, reluctantly letting go to start trudging to her sister.

 

Blake laughed, though she quietly agreed. 

 

As they crossed the torn up tundra, Blake felt a prickling on the back of her neck. She swiveled around, scanning the field behind her.

 

The sun was covered by pale gray clouds, the sky slowly turning to the vibrant pink of dusk. Black smoke coiled under the overcast like a secondary layer, rising still from the town. Jaune, Ren, and Nora were huddled under the parked military plane, and the grimm was nearly completely dissolved, only its curved mask left to disappear.

 

Nothing odd, other than the obvious.

 

She frowned, rubbing the back of her neck. Deciding to shrug it off for now (albeit a bit more alert), Blake turned and started up a jog, following her limping partner to the rest of her team, and Oscar.

 

In the far distance, a note was tapped into a scroll.

 

_Sharp girl. Better watch out for that one._


	13. it's not an accident

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *shimmies into ur emails* Why HELLO
> 
> Guys, the new season premiers in FIVE DAYS I'm gonna DIE. THE BEES and WINTER and Jaune's new hair (yikes) - it's gonna be an emotional few months and I am HERE FOR IT.
> 
> That being said, I want to truly thank all of you for reading my story and for those who commented while I struggled in the last few weeks - you're the reason I'm sticking with this story. You're the reason there's a new chapter. I can't thank you enough, and I hope you'll stick with me in the months to come :>
> 
> Also if you ever wanna hang out (or read some poetry/ short stories that I'm writing outside of AO3 for writing practice) hit me up @sorryformycrimes on Tumblr! I'd love to foster a community if we can :D Anyways I've talked long enough, here's chapter 14 (technically 13)!

* * *

 

Ruby lowered her hand as Blake and Yang looked at her, though she found herself confused. Why was Weiss looking at her like that?

 

“What?” Ruby said, blinking wide.

 

“They were totally having a moment.” Weiss replied, crossing her arms over her chest.

 

Ruby’s innocent expression twitched, a small smile curling at the corners of her lips. “Oh! Yeah, I know.”

 

“Why did you call for them then?” Oscar asked, Weiss mirroring his baffled expression.

 

“Cause we have stuff to do! I want them to have their moment, I really do - but we  _ are  _ kind of on a ticking time bomb.” Ruby said, pointing to her feet.

 

“...I suppose that’s pragmatic at best.” Weiss conceded, brushing her dirty bangs out of her face with a grimace. 

 

Ruby smiled, though she could tell it was weak, especially for her. She forced it a bit wider and walked to the door of the small office, shoving her more complex thoughts to the back of her mind. 

 

Made of the same silvery blue metal that lined most Atlas buildings, the office was no bigger than her home on Patch. The door held no handle, and there were no windows. Oscar felt along the door frame curiously, fingertips leaving heat impressions on the frozen metal. 

 

Weiss stepped up, leaning on her toes to look over Oscar's head. Ruby bit her lip to hide a genuine giggle. They looked like junior detectives, sleuthing out the door's secrets.

 

"Father and his paranoia…" Weiss grumbled under her breath, leaving Oscar and pacing down the outer wall. "I'll check around the other side."

 

Ruby hesitated, a word of protest dying on her tongue. 

 

It was stupid. She knew she was being stupid. Weiss could take care of herself, she was one of the strongest people Ruby knew… But still, Ruby couldn't seem to take her eyes off of her for more than a few minutes at a time. She kept looking during the fight too, risking herself just to check Weiss for veins of black. 

 

When her partner had dropped to her knees in the middle of combat, Ruby thought her heart would eject from her ribs. She'd moved without thinking, practically teleporting to her side and carrying her partner to safety. 

 

The ex-heiress hadn't moved a bit in her arms, and the spidering black lines were staining her pale skin like black ink dripping over ivory. Ruby had felt alarm unlike anything she'd ever experienced before. More than Pyrrha, or the Apathy, or the Leviathan. This was different - it was  _ Weiss _ . Her pink lips parted, choking on screams in her arms, lost to whatever horrors were playing behind her eyes. Sky blue was swallowed by sick black essence and Ruby - Ruby panicked. Without thought, she reached into herself with desperation unmatched and  _ pulled. _

 

The light flooded her like a dam breaking, her sight blinded by white warmth. Honestly, she was still exhausted from it. And even with her powers, she wasn’t convinced that Weiss was as okay as she seemed. She couldn’t vaporize the Leviathan over Argus, what made her think she could save Weiss from something like that? 

 

She knew she'd see those blank, black pools in her nightmares for the foreseeable future. It would at least be better than the flashes of Penny’s torso and blank seafoam green eyes she’d been seeing more frequently, along with nightmares of Salem emerging from a pool of tar with death in her eyes. And Weiss - well, she  _ seemed _ fine on the outside.

 

But in the inbetweens, Ruby knew better. The slightly off moments when her paranoia kicked in and she couldn't help but look at Weiss. Each time, without fail, Weiss would go to glance over her shoulder, as if she heard someone call her name. She would correct herself immediately, but the evidence of confusion was still there, written in the creases between her pale eyebrows. The subtle tremble in her fingers that made Ruby want to hold them still, if only to give Weiss a moment of rest. The urge rose in her throat even now, cloying and thick, tasting of iron and ice.

 

"I'll uh, I'll go with you!" Ruby chimed, bouncing forward and hurrying after Weiss.

 

Oscar looked up as Weiss protested, "Ruby for the last time, I'm  _ fine! _ I can look at the other side of the building on my own."

 

“I know!” Ruby said, fidgeting nervously. “It’s just - y’know I know you can handle yourself and you’re super strong, like surprisingly strong I mean you’re tinier than me now -” Weiss crossed her arms with a sharp huff, and Ruby wrapped it up quickly, tripping over herself as she blurted out. “A-a-and what I mean is that I like being there for you! So like… would.. Would you let me be there for you? Even if I know you’re strong by yourself?”

 

The ex-heiress looked like she’d just gotten a snowball to the face, the surprise was so plastered and stark across her features. Her arms uncrossed, stiff fingers flexing at her sides. Her crystalline blue eyes were locked firmly on Ruby’s, and even in the tension, with time ticking relentlessly forward, Ruby couldn’t help but think that she would never take the color blue for granted ever again.

 

Weiss broke the stare to glance over Ruby’s shoulder. She relaxed, and nodded slowly. 

 

“Fine,” She said, her cheeks a warm pink - from the cold, Ruby figured. “But you’re going in first.”

 

Ruby brightened considerably, a wide grin taking up most of her face. She gave a mock salute as Weiss rolled her eyes fondly, continuing her path along the outer wall. “Yes ma’am!”

 

Weiss snorted, flipping her thick hair over her shoulder, long silvery strands tickling Ruby’s nose in departure. “Please, Winter responds to ma’am. I, however,” Her voice grew a bit soft. “I prefer to be just Weiss.”

 

Ruby felt her heart grow warm at that, unable to control her grin and the bounce in her step. Maybe Weiss really was okay.

 

Meanwhile Oscar just watched them disappear around the corner with half-lidded caramel green eyes, shaking his head with a sigh that carried the weight of two souls. “Guess I’ll just keep looking over here.”

 

He didn’t stay alone for long though, Blake and Yang catching up finally to help him feel around the walls.

 

Weiss hadn’t been kidding about the paranoid security, Ruby thought as her partner finally found a way to unlock the keypad that was hidden  _ inside _ the wall. 

 

“So this might be a dumb question, but why would your dad have so much security for an office building?” Ruby asked as Weiss tapped irritatedly at the keys.

 

“I can’t say until we know what’s inside.” Weiss replied, biting her lower lip in concentration. “He wasn’t being subtle about the quarry being here, there’s no way the locals wouldn’t have noticed him blowing up the mountain to build it.”

 

“Yeeaahh… The giant Schnee flag on the cliff doesn’t really scream: ‘Caution, Illegal Mining.’” Ruby said nonchalantly, rocking back on her heels.

 

Faint clouds of heat burst from Weiss’ lips in a strained laugh, which quickly devolved into a growl of frustration as the keypad denied her once more. In a fit of impulse she slapped her palm against the keys, prompting another flash of deep red. A darker, more furious growl left her gritted teeth, and Ruby felt a tendril of worry begin to rise. 

 

She stepped forward, touching Weiss’ shoulder for support. “Hey, Weiss it’s okay -”

 

Her partner shook off Ruby’s hand almost violently, whipping around and narrowly whacking her with her ponytail. Her eyes were bloodshot at the edges, veins pulsing darker and darker along her temples as she turned to snap viciously.

 

“It’s  _ not  _ okay Ruby, I have to know what he’s doing!! This is  _ my  _ family's legacy he’s ruining so completely with - with shit like this!” She slammed her fist onto the keypad so hard her aura flared and the force dented the keys inward.

 

Ruby recoiled as if she’d been slapped, the warmth from before chased away by freezing hounds of dread. Her silver eyes went wide as she drew her hands to her chest instinctively, stepping back from her partner.

 

“Weiss..?” Her voice came out so small, Ruby almost couldn’t hear herself.

 

The pale girl’s veins were nearly black at her temples, her pupils blown so wide they nearly swallowed the blue iris whole. She panted as if she’d just run a marathon - but her fury abided for just a split second from Ruby’s reaction. She blinked rapidly, pupils shrinking back to their normal size. She dropped her posture and clarity returned in a dizzying rush for both of them.

 

Weiss’ hands flew to her mouth, eyes filling with startled tears. Her voice cracked as it came out, “O-oh Ruby I’m - I’m so sorry I don’t know what I -” Her lower lip trembled in a rare moment of vulnerability, Ruby’s heartstrings pulling her viciously in two directions.

 

She slowly approached her partner like approaching a frightened doe. Weiss rapidly babbled apologies, her voice growing softer and weaker with each repetition. Ruby decided to abandon her caution when the sight became too much for her to bear. Two steps and her arms folded around Weiss’ shaking form, trying to infuse as much warmth in the hug as she could. Ruby was shocked at how cold she was, quickly rubbing her back to generate more heat. It was like hugging a moving popsicle - why didn’t she say she was cold?

 

Weiss only hesitated for a beat before Ruby felt tentative hands graze the edges of her corset. She suppressed a shiver, Weiss’ arms wrapping beneath the flutter of her tattered cape. Weiss sniffled as her scarf bunched up around her ears and she buried herself into Ruby’s loose warm hood. It probably smelled of smoke and a slew of other things, but Weiss just buried into it further with a muffled sob.

 

Ruby’s chin gently rested on Weiss’ head, body shuddering as she released a slow, deep sigh. Her motions slowed into gentle circles, swaying them slightly.

 

“I’m sorry f-for snapping.” Weiss whispered, voice hollow as if she were just a ghost on her shoulder.

 

Ruby pulled back a bit, concern knitting her eyebrows. “It’s okay Weiss, I know you didn’t mean it.”

 

“It’s not okay though.”

 

She blinked, startled by the conviction in her voice. “What -”

 

“I told myself I’d never be like  _ him _ again.” Weiss hissed through her teeth, pulling away just enough to shove her palm into her eye, rubbing furiously as frosty tears dripped down her cheeks. 

 

Ruby swallowed hard, slowly moving Weiss’ rough hand away from her eye, replacing it with her own gentle touch. She felt the slight ridges of her scar beneath her calloused thumb, carefully swiping away the cold droplets before they could freeze.

 

“What do you mean by again?” She asked gently, feeling like her heart was strangling itself in her chest as Weiss refused to meet her eyes.

 

The ex-heiress laugh mirthlessly, gesturing to the quarry. “My father. He always snaps when things don’t go his way, barking orders. If his words don’t work, then... “ Weiss shook her head bitterly, glancing painfully at the dented keyboard. “...He knows how intimidation can take on many forms. I used to use rage as a weapon in Beacon, but you...you all helped me realise that  _ that _ kind of rage wasn’t power at all. It was just a mask for weakness.”

 

Ruby stayed in shocked silence, trying to absorb all this information Weiss was giving her. She filed a few to tackle at a later date, much like she did with new battle strategies. Her partner pulled away from her, the tip of her nose bright pink from crying and the chill.

 

“I’ve never met your dad,” Ruby began, her hands moving of their own accord as she unclipped the silver rose brooch at her shoulder. “But the more you talk about him, the less confident I am in my self control.”

 

She made a confused noise, observing Ruby with that funny little crease between her eyebrows. “What..?”

 

Ruby attempted a bit of a grin, swinging her cape off her shoulders and wrapping it around Weiss, stemming her protest with a stern shake of her head. “Nuh uh, I expected to hug you and I ended up hugging a popsicle. Ice Queen might be a fun name, but it’s not great hugging material. Keep it on for now, don’t even try to tell me you aren’t cold. Also if your dad raises his voice at you in front of me - or really any of us, I’ll probably punch him in the nose.”

 

A surprised and ungraceful snort burst from the shorter girl, shaking her head at Ruby with a small, incredulous smile. Ruby shifted, hunching her shoulders up to her ears, feeling oddly off balance now that she didn’t have her cloak on her. 

 

“What?” She mumbled, interpreting Weiss’ expression as exasperation.

 

“I just… I don’t know how you do that.” Weiss murmured, her thin fingers wrapping solidly in the edges of the cloak and pulling it completely around her body. 

 

“Do what?” Ruby wasn’t sure why, but the image of Weiss covered in deep reds when she was usually covered in blues and whites… it suited her more than Ruby was expecting.

 

Weiss gave a tired smile, looking at the fabric around her with what seemed to be reverence. “...How you always know how to make things better. You do it with everything, and I…” She closed her eyes, burying herself deeper in the cloak. “I appreciate it. More than you know.”

 

Heat crawled up to Ruby’s cheeks, a shy, lopsided grin growing steadily on her face.

 

_ WH-AM! _

 

The pair nearly jumped a foot, Ruby’s scythe unfolded completely before either of them could blink. Weiss’ rapier joined a fraction of a second later, both of them frantically searching for the source of the crash. Voices sounded in the distance, Ruby’s attention perking up.

 

“Yang??” She called warily.

 

There was a shuffling from the inside of the office, and as Ruby prepared to jump over the office building to meet her sister, a section of the wall slid to the side. A pair of amused lilac peaked out from the doorway, leaning on the doorframe as she flexed her even  _ more _ dented yellow knuckles. 

 

“You rang for a Yang?” She drawled, prompting a hearty groan from both inside and out of the office. 

 

Soft white light illuminated the space behind Yang’s muscled frame, Blake and Oscar already starting to rummage through desks and holo screens, the pair staunchly ignoring the section of desks completely collapsed beneath a dented metal door.

 

“Well,” Weiss said dryly, “I guess I hit the wrong thing.”

 

Yang laughed, moving to let the pair inside. Ruby, now bouncing on her toes and ready to finally get some answers, rushed inside first. Distantly she heard Yang teasing Weiss about something, though she left too quickly to catch it. She sidled up to Oscar’s side, peaking over his shoulder. “Find anything?”

 

Oscar shook his head with a sigh, eyes narrowed in concentration as he tapped on the screen. “No, I think they’ve encrypted all of the important documents. I don’t know the key.”

 

“Maybe it’s on one of these stations?” Ruby mused, her sharp gaze scanning over the space. 

 

Arranged like cubicles without the barriers, the office space was sparse and just as cold inside as it was outside. Even with the door shut and moving bodies to warm the interior, Ruby could still see her breath pluming out with each exhale. They spent an hour searching for clues, only to keep hitting dead end after dead end. She kept a close eye on Weiss, but she seemed to be keeping her frustration in check this time.

 

Ruby was really starting to hate the colorless, sterile style of most Atlas interior decoration. She missed Vale’s creative architecture, the vibrant colors splotched about her room back in Patch. Everything in the office was just so… lifeless. 

 

Blake brushed past her, heading towards the back of the room. Desperate to look at something other than files she couldn’t access, Ruby watched as Blake slid past Yang’s turned back. She caught a small smirk on the faunus’ face as she brushed her fingertips over the small of Yang’s back in passing. Yang sat up straight like she’d been shocked within an inch of her life, her knee smashing into the underside of the desk in surprise, her aura protecting her from injury. She shot Blake an incredulous look.

 

Blake just gave a sly wink, smiling with satisfaction as Yang mumbled something under her breath, cheeks burning red. Ruby decided to get up and stretch, wandering aimlessly over to her sister with her expression carefully blank. She pointed to Yang’s hair. “Sis, your hair’s on fire.”

 

Yang flushed a shade of pink Ruby didn’t even know existed, pulling her entire mane forward to pat out the licking flames quickly. “Woops, must’ve triggered my semblance when I hit my knee.” She said just a tad too quickly.

 

Ruby finally cracked a grin, sing-songing, “Suuure.”

 

“Hey, I think I found something,” Oscar called suddenly, sounding just as surprised as they were. 

 

He was seated by one of the larger holodecks near the destroyed tables, his eyes wide and reflecting the ghostly light of the screen. Ruby was by his side in an instant, Weiss sliding in next to her and leaning in to read what was on the screen. Yang limped her way over, though after an hour of research she was starting to feel a bit better physically, followed closely by Blake. They crowded around the small boy, his freckles standing out against the red of his tanned cheeks. He still wasn't used to being in close proximity with people. 

 

“So I found some encrypted documents deep in this guy's personal files,” Oscar started, showing them the file and error message along with it. “It’s labeled ‘military contracts’. There’s two sections, ‘Atlas’ and ‘Mistral’.” Oscar twisted around to look at Weiss with a frown. "Didn't you say that mining in Atlas is illegal?

 

“Yes…” Weiss murmured thoughtfully, gears whirling in her head. "... If this is a military sanctioned project, my father must have made them a deal they couldn't refuse. We can't open these documents right?"

 

Oscar sighed, nodding. "Yeah, the encryption is something else."

 

"...Well does anyone have a flash drive?" Yang said, using Weiss' head as an armrest. She was quickly batted away, but her smile stayed in place. "We might be able to find someone who can unlock them later, might as well take them."

 

Blake hummed thoughtfully. "I think I saw a flash drive in one of the computers, I'll see if I can find it."

 

Ruby leaned a bit more over the desk, reading the other files on the screen. Oscar politely moved aside so she could take over. Weiss lingered by her shoulder, curious as to what she was pulling up.

 

"There's a document here…it isn't locked like the rest of them." Ruby murmured, silver eyes scanning over the words. "Looks like a letter of some kind..?"

 

She took a deep breath and read it out loud so Yang and Blake could hear. " _ To Whom it May Concern, I am sorry. So… so very sorry. This project wasn't what I thought it was, but it was a ridiculous amount of money. I couldn't turn it down, and we started digging. Not for dust. If only it were dust. _

 

_ The ground is shaking. Is Atlas falling?  _

 

_ There are grim pouring out of the quarry and I will save my own skin. But someone should know that we found what we were looking for. We found the relic, and it is as terrible as I imagined…" _

 

Ruby trailed off, her jaw slack with shock. She turned to her team, Blake and Yang frozen and staring at her from the opposite end of the room. Oscar was shaking so badly he had to sit down, his hands gripping the roots of his hair.

 

Weiss was silent, though her fingertips were pressed so harshly into her lips that the pink turned as pale as her skin. The moments ticked by with only the soft howl of wind whipping into the open doorway. Until finally, Weiss spoke up, her voice shaking.

 

"I need to find Winter." 


	14. losing myself in a storm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy fuck has it been like a month already?? Man, how time flies o.o I've been super busy with some of my other projects recently so I'm sorry for the late update! I'm so sorry about how short the chapter is, but I wanted to give something short and intense for the holidays at least. Good news tho, I should be back in the swing of things once my finals calm the fuck down lol 
> 
> It's been a hot second, how are you guys doin?? ARE WE STOKED FOR THE BEES IN VOLUME 7 CAUSE I SURE AM
> 
> Also as a PSA, the events in this fanfic won't change at all with the releases of the episodes. I've already got a plan in motion, Imma keep it that way to make sure I don't go fucking insane lol Anyway, thank you guys for sticking with me this long, comments and kudos appreciated greatly! 
> 
> I love y'all to the moon and beyond, and as always, don't forget to love each other <3

* * *

 

Weiss was cold. So, so cold. Her hands were shaking like the way cables rattled in the wind, even the soft weight of Ruby's cloak couldn't keep her warm. She stood just outside the office with her phone raised high to catch any kind of signal, the wind buffeting her hair and piercing through the rips in her clothes. In the aftermath of hitting another dead end, Weiss felt like she was going crazy. 

 

Why was it that her father could _still_ gatekeep her, regardless of his proximity? In this horrible game of secrets and power, Jaques Schnee had managed to rig it in his favor. Weiss arrived in Atlas wholly unprepared for it, and this sick, black feeling seemed to feed off of her frustration.

 

She _hated_ how her father still had a hand in her narrative. Secluded miles away in his perfect icy mansion, probably sipping on scotch. Still lording over the cold prison halls like the proud warden he was. Oh the black rage _roiled_ in her gut, rising faster and wilder than she'd ever felt in her entire life. 

 

Her back molars grinded together until the bones creaked in her jaw, thoughts and feelings flitting through her head too fast for her to grasp.

 

It was the grimm, it had to be. There was no reason for this insanity to crawl its way up her throat in a growl. She swallowed it down with a painful wince, fumbling with her scroll to check the signal. Winter was good at control, she _had_ to have advice. Answers. _Something_ for them to go off of. She always knew how to make Weiss feel calmer, more firm with her emotions. If there was ever a time she needed her, it was now.

 

Weiss' front teeth dug deeply into the soft skin of her lower lip, nearly drawing blood. The bars on her scroll were gone, replaced by a bolded font reading 'NO SIGNAL'. She barely resisted the urge to chuck it into the quarry, closing her eyes and breathing heavily through her nose.

 

The gentle scent of rose petals caught her off guard, and she latched onto it like a lifeline. Her free hand wrapped into the worn fabric of Ruby's cloak, drawing it more firmly around her shoulders as she buried her nose in it. The torn ends fluttered by her ankles, Weiss' breaths growing louder and louder in her ears. Centered, breathing, counting. She felt so sick.

 

"Weiss?"

 

Blue eyes snapped open. She quickly swiveled around, meeting an amused, but worried lilac gaze.

 

"Still no signal." Weiss blurted out, her face warm enough to melt the sporadic snowflakes that landed on her cheeks.

 

Yang placed a hand on her hip. "I haven't had a signal since we arrived in Atlas, so I'm not surprised."

 

"It's wrong," Weiss insisted, her knuckles paling against the edges of her scroll. "Atlas' CCT is the strongest out of all the continents, it was the first to be built and encompasses both the Silver City _and_ Mantle. There should always be reception here, even on the outskirts. How else would the military be able to contact their ships?"

 

"Maybe their radios are on a different frequency?" Yang suggested, her left side still stuttering a bit as she moved to Weiss. "We can check the ships for working radios, if Jaune and the others haven't already."

 

Weiss' attention was divided. Yang's reassurance was sound, but there was something else dragging her focus away. Words...whispers tickled at the inside of her ear, the wind whipping her long hair around her neck like a noose. Her eyes must have gone glossy, for Yang's expression had fallen abruptly.

 

"Weiss… are you okay?"

 

For a moment, she considered lying. She tried diversion instead.

 

“Atlas used to be my home, but now it just feels… tainted. Nothing is where it should be, and it...it scares me. Winter should have picked up, we shouldn’t have to fight grimm here, my father -” She bit her lip, swallowing the angry words.

 

“...It’s kinda like someone went into your room and moved everything around, right?” Yang asked, her voice gentle.

 

Weiss' response caught in her throat, a small, uncertain whine slipping free. Nail on the head, and Yang just blinked at her calmly. Never demanding, just… there. Weiss had to think that if Winter’s way of dealing with the unknown was control, Yang’s was community. She'd always marveled their differences. Both were great older sisters, but they had such contrasting methods. Whereas Winter had always answered Weiss' problems with a clipped solution _(Rise up and conquer it, sister. You are more than capable)_ , Yang had always answered with an invitation to learn with her, for Weiss to come up with her own solution, and Yang would be ready to catch her if she fails. Two methods for the same goal.

 

Any other day, Weiss would have loved to come up with her own solution. Any other day, when she could actually trust her own judgement. Often she preferred to stick with her own solutions. However, there was the matter of confidence. Confidence she’d lost the very moment she'd snapped at Ruby. The loss of her temper rattled her more than she could admit out loud. 

 

Ruby didn't deserve that. The young leader was already struggling with so many things, Weiss certainly couldn't - no, _wouldn't_ \- add on to it if she could help it.

 

It left her reeling in the isolation - something she knew well and wished she'd never feel again. Even amongst all of her friends, she tried to keep her burdens to herself. Adding her problems to everyone else's just seemed like the cruelest act she could commit. For their sake, she kept quiet. Now she was left to her own overwhelming sea of struggles, and she'd never felt so alone in her life.

 

Stuck on a floating rock with dictators and monopolies and horrifying ancient monsters erupting from the ground - and if this nightmare couldn't get any worse - she couldn't stop hearing voices on the wind. Voices that came from somewhere she couldn't place, but could _feel_ the pull of distance. It was so far away she had to strain to hear it, something cold tugging at her chest.

 

_...antle's defenses…...ready for you…._

 

"-eiss?"

 

_..es my queen…..e girl is… key..._

 

"Remnant to Ice Queen."

 

Bile rose and burned the back of her throat, but the ache in her chest grew long and thin. An echo like the darkest well, her skin pebbling with feverish intent. It was ancestral and hollow - an echo of light and dark playing tug of war over her heart. All the while, the whispers started to crescendo. 

 

They had begun as the wind. Something she thought was a friend muttering behind her. It grew before they searched the office for the door. Ruby had noticed - she was always observant and Weiss should have known she'd be the first to pick up on her strangeness. 

 

The whispers grew louder.

 

Closer.

 

She could make out a few words, and her curiosity burned like dry ice.

 

_….doorway to….Atlas…. Faunus girl…. Silver eyes…._

 

"Weiss you're scaring me. Hey!"

 

Silver eyes - wait no she needed to know. Was Ruby in danger? Who was that talking? What -

 

Rough, warm hands shook her cold shoulders, cracking the ice over her spine and snapping her free of the whispers. She jerked as if the hands were hot irons, blinking wildly at Yang's open concern. Knees freezing while buried in the snow, she suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe. Her chest heaving but no air reaching her lungs. There was black tar tinting the edges of her vision, clumping to her eyelashes.

 

"Fuck - hey hey it's okay. Focus on me, listen to my voice. You're here, you're safe. You're here, you're safe." One of the hands left her shoulder, and Yang pressed her palm down onto her sternum. Weiss could feel the weight of her palm in each wheezing rise and fall. "Breathe with me, snow. In,"

 

Weiss' mouth gaped open in a painful gasp, unaware of the strain in her lungs until the cold air sniped down her throat.

 

"Out."

 

She followed Yang's quiet, structured orders. Slowly, the black seeped out of her vision. Her head cleared and the gentle pressure of Yang's palm became comforting, rather than suffocating. She was exhausted, her eyes slipping closed. Her body leaned towards warmth, pressing her forehead into Yang's shoulder. Muscular arms wrapped around her shivering form. She was so grateful that Yang was a rock.

 

“What’s happening to you, Weiss?" Yang whispered, her large hands ghosting over her spine.

 

A tear slipped free from the ex-heiress' eye, black like the ink of a pen. 

 

"I don't know." She whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Added: I think a lot of the characters revealed in Vol 7 could work really well with my plot actually, so I'll be adding some of those characters into this fic cause it means I don't need to make as many OCs XD


	15. your miserable plight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ohhoohohoho shit happy early new year everyone!! I'm so sorry for the delay of this chapter, I had to figure out where to go next and boy howdy did finals kick my ass lolol (Big thanks to my friend Snow who helped me work out my brain block for this chapter, her advice was so helpful T.T)
> 
> Now we're here, most of us are queer, and ready to fight fear! This chapter is super heavy info based, but it was kinda necessary. From here on out, the plot doth thicken 

* * *

It felt like it'd been days since they'd opened the office, since Yang had teased Weiss for wearing Ruby's cloak and Weiss had blushed like a rose. Coiled up on the frozen ground with the pale girl trembling in her arms, Yang ached for that easy exchange now more than ever.

 

She had felt the alarmed gaze of her partner from over her shoulder, tingling and crackling over her aura like her attention carried a physical weight. Almost as if she could read her mind, Blake kept Ruby and Oscar occupied, steering them away from the gaping doorway. Yang couldn’t have been more grateful.

 

There was something so fragile in Weiss' body, like a glass case shuddering against Yang's shoulder, the hood of Ruby's cloak bunched up near her neck. Weiss wiped at her cheek, leaving a curious streak of black over her porcelain skin, mumbling something under her breath.

 

 Yang tilted her ear to her. "What?"

 

"N-nothing…" Weiss mumbled, a shiver rocking through her so violently that Yang could feel it travel pass her palm. "We should get going."

 

Yang almost dragged her back into the embrace, but she thought better of it. Weiss didn't need that right now. Instead, she reached for her bird-boned hand and clasped it between her palms, flaring her aura to give her a little warmth. Weiss couldn't resist if she tried, sinking into the touch with a bone-deep exhaustion. Yang swallowed her sisterly instincts, her heart lurching as she watched the iron seep from Weiss' shoulders.  Gods, she seemed so small like this.

 

"Hey. You know that we love you, right?" Yang said softly. 

 

Weiss blinked rapidly a few times, as if waking from a nap. Her voice cracked quietly on the first word, and Yang's heart wheezed. "Y...yes, I know. I know. I… I love you too. All of you. So much."

 

Unable to deny the pull of comfort, Yang drew the ex-heiress into an all-consuming warm hug, arms loose in case she wanted to squirm away. 

 

"We're not going anywhere." Yang promised. "Family sticks together. No matter what you're going through, we're here for you. You're a part of my family, Weiss. You have been for a while, but I don't think anyone's told you."

 

Weiss' blitzed expression would have been comical if Yang didn't feel like her heart was wringing itself out with worry. Silver hair fluttered as she nodded jerkily.

 

"But you  _ have _ to talk to us." Yang continued, making eye contact. “You know we can’t help you until we know what’s up.”

 

Weiss gulped, her lower lip trembling.

 

“I -”

 

_ “Yang! Weiss!” _

 

Yang’s neck cracked with how fast she turned around, the hair on the back of her neck rising. Dangling from the doorframe, Ruby gestured for them frantically, her eyes wide. "Guys, you need to see this!"

 

Weiss was gone before Yang could even blink, her footsteps crunching away as Ruby’s cloak fluttered behind her. She joined her partner, the pair moving silently back into the building. 

 

Yang stared after them, just listening to her own heartbeat. The wind tussled her hair, her ears were ringing. But her heart was solid and stronger than ever, marching along to an even tempo. 

 

She cracked her neck to the side, rolling her shoulders back. 

 

“If she thinks I’m letting this go, she’s got another thing coming,” She muttered under her breath, walking back into the building.

 

The chairs had all been rolled to the edges of the office messily, except for three that remained huddled around a single flickering monitor, one of them empty as Ruby had chosen to stand. Blake’s ears swiveled in Yang’s direction the moment she entered, her head popping up and following the motion. 

 

Her spine tingled at the attention, but her tongue was thick with worried thoughts. Her eyes ping-ponged between Weiss and Blake, narrowing on the silver-haired girl. Blake caught on, hazarding a quick glance.

 

The object of concern lingered near Ruby with all the presence of a dust mote, her shoulders curled forward to reduce her presence as much as possible. Yang and Blake shared an unwritten conversation, and Blake sat back in her seat, giving her partner a wordless nod as her feline gaze locked on Weiss. 

 

Oblivious, Ruby hovered over Oscar’s shoulder, pointing at something on the screen and muttering, “Try switching cameras and zoom out, it might have a better angle.”

 

Yang crossed the room and leaned over the both of them, her hair falling loose over Oscar’s shoulder and nearly drowning the poor boy. He angled his body to the side, unphased as he pulled up a video feed. 

 

The holo-screen crackled into a rasterized image. Muddy brown pixels converged and snapped into a sharpened outline of the top of the dust quarry. Yang leaned closer, frowning. “...When is this?”

 

“Two days ago.” Oscar said, a similar frown on his face.

 

The video displayed the upper cliffside of the quarry. The sky was dotted with ships, framing the Schnee banner that clung to the rock and flapped silently. A digital clock overlayed a small corner of the screen, depicting the middle of the day. 

 

There was nothing really to see, in Yang’s opinion. The ships drifted by slowly, ominous clouds of metal drowning out the blue of the day. The banner fluttered again.

 

“I don’t see any-”

 

“Yang, the cliff.” Blake said gently.

 

Yang glanced at her partner, quickly looking back at the video. 

 

Where the land plateaued into vast plains of tundra and dropped to the cliffside, a pair of figures appeared along the edge. Both heavily layered in coats and furs, their faces hard to see at the camera’s distance.

 

She leaned closer, squinting. 

 

The pair were definitely male. One with dark brown hair and bristly mustache that took up half his face, and the other with white hair, and also a thick mustache. They seemed...cordial.

 

Yang heard the breath leave Weiss like a gunshot in a library. She looked up, the ex-heiress' hands clutching Ruby's cloak so tightly the fabric stretched over her knuckles like skin. 

 

It clicked that this was probably Weiss' father, and Yang's jaw clenched with sympathy. 

 

"Keep watching." Blake said, rising from her chair.

 

She placed a supportive hand on Weiss' shoulder, who flinched at first, and then rested into it slowly. 

 

There was no sound, but the men chatted for a little bit before shaking hands. The darker haired man patted Jaques on the back, and a third man appeared at the lip. Long black hair braided down his back, and a long silver scorpion tail coiled up from the base of his spine. His body twitched with a riotous laugh. Jaques flinched away, his head turning with unease. 

 

The three of them departed out of sight, and Yang found herself feeling dizzy. She finally remembered to breathe, the image of purple stained clothes and Ruby's hollow expression as she told of their uncle's close call with death running to the forefront of her mind. 

 

"Tyrian is here with someone." Ruby said softly, her voice echoing with fear that had yet to set in. "Which means Salem is ahead of us."

 

"Remind me again who this...Tyrian, is?" Weiss croaked, eyebrows pinched together. Yang eyed the smudge of black still drawn on her cheek.

 

"He's the agent of Salem that poisoned Ruby's uncle when he tried to kidnap her." Oscar said, pushing away from the monitor. "Jaune said he was insane."

 

"More than insane." Ruby muttered, crossing her arms over her stomach. "He...he referred to Salem as a goddess. I think he might even worship her as one."

 

"So we're not just dealing with a psycho here." Yang grumbled, placing her hands on her hips. "Cool, I love homicidal radicalists."

 

Blake bit her lip and her ears went flat, drawing Yang's attention immediately. Before she could find the words to apologise, people were already speaking.

 

"My father has never been a good man, but this...” Weiss trailed off, her blue eyes blank as they stared at the video, unseeing.

 

Ruby brushed past Yang and gently pressed her palm into Weiss’ shoulder as a show of solidarity. Yang could almost feel the overwhelmed sigh as Weiss sagged into her partner's touch.

 

“Why would your father dig into Atlas?” Oscar asked, frowning. 

 

Yang crossed her arms over her chest, wincing as the ruined leather of her jacket ripped more. “And what would Salem want with a hole in the ground?”

 

Weiss shook her head as she stood stiffly, clearly trying not to lean into Ruby. "I don't know. But if they have him doing Salem's bidding…" She pressed her lips into a thin line. "We have a lot more to worry about."

 

Yang felt dread take a dive into her stomach. "...Like what?"

 

Weiss grimaced. "A bottomless budget, for one."

 

"Shit." Blake hissed.

 

"Yeah. And…my father holds a seat on the Atlas council. It's not as influential as Ironwood's, but it's still a voice and he's… a politician through and through."

 

"Why would he side with Salem? He can't think that anything good would come from it?" Ruby murmured.

 

"My father is a powerful man," Weiss croaked, hastily pressing a finger to the corner of her eye. Yang was the only one who noticed it come away wet and black. "But he is only as intelligent as his greed. He knows when to turn a blind eye to get what he wants."

 

"And what does he want?" Blake asked, frowning.

 

"I haven't seen the man in six months, but my guess is money. He can never have enough of it." Weiss replied sourly.

 

"So...where does this get us?" Yang asked. "Salem's making your dad drill holes into Atlas?"

 

Oscar raised his hand tentatively. "...What if the ancient grimm was a decoy?"

 

"That's a pretty big decoy, buddy.” Yang huffed.

 

“Well I mean, why else would he dig here if it wasn’t for Salem?” Oscar asked.

 

Yang sighed, running a hand through her hair, flipping it over her shoulder. “True.”

 

“There’s no dust on Atlas itself. It’s all on the outskirts of Mantle.” Weiss added, shifting away from Ruby’s hovering. 

 

Yang saw only a glimpse of sadness flicker across Ruby’s expression before she shrugged it off and got down to business, chiming in, “So say the grimm was a decoy. Are you saying there’s other pockets of grimm sleeping under this floating rock…thing?”

 

“There could be.” Blake said, one of her ears flicking to attention, the other laying flat against her head. “Think about it. What made their plan work last time?”

 

“...Panic.” Ruby said, significantly quieter.

 

"Fear is a powerful divider." Oscar murmured, rubbing the side of his face. 

 

"She's gonna do the same thing she did to Beacon." Yang realized. "But for the entire city."

 

Everyone in the room fell silent.

 

Until Blake spoke up softly. "Cit _ ies _ . Mantle is still below us, and very much a part of Atlas. They’d be the first to be reached if there was a grimm invasion."

 

"And it's less guarded." Oscar hummed.

 

"So...what do we do with this?" Yang asked, placing a hand on her hip.

 

“We need to meet with Ironwood.” Ruby said finally.

 

The entire room shifted to look at her incredulously, but the younger girl didn’t even flinch. She fixed each of them with her steely gray stare, mouth pulled into a thin line. “This is bigger than the eight of us can handle. We’re talking about an entire  _ cityscape _ as a potential target, not just one or two small towns. Even if Ironwood turns out to be a problem, he’s the highest authority we know and we might be able to find someone who’ll believe us enough to put a stop on Mr. Schnee’s excavations. Mantle needs to be prepared for a wave of grimm, and the only way we’ll be able to help with that is if we have access to the military.”

 

“Weiss’ sister might be the best bet we have with that, though.” Blake sighed. “And she still isn’t answering?”

 

In the harsh fluorescent lights, Weiss had never looked more like a ghost as she shook her head no. “I have no signal here.”

 

“But she knows you’re in Atlas?”

 

“Yes, we’re supposed to have dinner tonight.” Weiss fidgeted with the handle of her rapier, the gears clicking softly in the pause. “Except her ship is here, and she hasn’t come back for it. And I’m -” She clamped her mouth shut, but Ruby must have missed it as she chimed in quickly for reassurance.

 

“That could mean anything, maybe she’s just busy! Look, we’re all exhausted and we haven’t had a moment to breathe between grimm and finding clues. How about we go back to Jaune and the others, tell them what we found, and then Weiss you can try someone else’s phone to call your sister again. Go to dinner, and maybe she can get us an audience with Ironwood. How’s that sound?”

 

“I can get behind that.” Yang said slowly, watching Weiss blink a ring of black away furiously. “We could all use a moment to breathe.”

 

Blake seconded, Oscar nodding in agreement. They all looked to Weiss, who fidgeted a bit under their scrutiny. She and Yang made direct eye contact, and the defiance bled from her thin shoulders. She gave a single, firm nod.

 

“Okay.” She mumbled, sinking into the red cloak like it was a warm body. “...That’s a good plan, Ruby.”

 

Yang hid a small smirk as her sister perked up like a puppy, failing happily at containing the grin on her face. Weiss rolled her eyes tiredly, though there was no bite to the slight curl of her lips. 

 

“Alright, plan made! Go team RWBY - and Oscar! ROWBY! Nope, sorry that won’t work.” Yang laughed as Ruby exuberance deflated, leaving her to grin at Oscar sheepishly.

 

Oscar snickered quietly, shaking his head as he reached for the video and documents to download onto the flashdrive they’d found. “You guys work too well together for me to join. I’d be too far behind, skill wise.”

 

“Don’t think like that - you’re definitely skilled in your own right. Plus, I think Jaune and Nora would physically fight us if we tried to claim you for our team.” Blake chuckled. 

 

Oscar flushed to the tips of his freckled ears, pulling the drive free a little aggressively. “O-oh, really? You think so?”

 

“Hundred percent.” Yang grinned, gravitating towards Blake’s side. If she let her aura flare when a visible shiver ripped down Blake’s spine. Well. No one else had to know. 


	16. we stand undivided

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If you're tuning back into this story, I'd recommend rereading the last two chapters. I tweaked them earlier today and they flow much, much better lol
> 
> [CAUTION: Long post ahead]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *crawling free from the desert on hands and knees* It's,,,been 84 years,,,, 
> 
> Fuck, what a whirlwind these past four months have been. I want to apologise to you guys for like, dropping off the face of the earth. I've been writing other things when I can, but all of my energy has been thrust into moving the fuck out of Arizona and I haven't had any time between stress and money and apparently a pandemic so I just... wanna thank you so much for being in this fandom, and doing what you do. 
> 
> I'm a lurker by trade and I love the RWBY community so much for all it's given me - the people, the art, the stories, the memes. I'm moving to a whole new state in like a month and I can't tell you how grounding it is to know that even if everything around me changes, I'll still have the internet to connect with the people and fandoms I love and care about. So thank you for being patient with me.
> 
> Thank you for being interested in my weird little story, even past the release of the 7th volume. Thank you for reading, I hope it's a cool escape from what we're all contending with now. I hope all of you (new friends and old) are staying safe in these uncertain times. Keep your hopes safe and secure, there is certainly a better day on our horizons, we just gotta get there! 
> 
> As always, I love you guys, and I hope I made the wait worth it. Comments and kudos are appreciated, and above all. Kindness is in short supply right now, so don't forget to love each other and support who you can. The world is always brighter when there is more love to go around. <3

* * *

As they trekked back across the tundra back to the ships, Blake couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched. She scanned the horizon several times, even going so far as to turn around and scan the opposite way. The craggy cliffs rounding the Schnee quarry were barren, though the ancient grimm had decomposed enough to fill the entire western sky in black smog. All that remained of it was the skull, one of its jaws laying feet away, the other sitting with the mouth ajar, spidery cracks webbed around the six eye sockets and stained red down its cheeks. 

 

Just looking at it made her spine tingle and the fur on her ears stand on end. She flipped them down with a shiver, hurrying to catch up with the others, convinced she was still on edge from the fight. They’d gathered around the others, Jaune and Ren leaned up against each other at their shoulders, fast asleep. Nora had just finished clicking one of the panels on Magnhild back into place, shoving a few tinkering things back into the pouch at her belt as she raised her head to greet them.

 

“You guys look great. What’d you find?” She said with a layer of sarcasm over her words, grinning good-naturedly.

 

Blake and the others situated themselves on the thin layer of snow and cold hard rock, Ruby taking the liberty to launch into what they found. Blake noticed she was back in her red cloak. She hadn’t seen when Weiss gave it back.

 

Yang flopped down beside her, bringing a solid wave of heat with her. Blake glanced at her, lips parting slightly as the heat stuck itself to her like a second skin that was meant to be there, and something odd slipped into the corners of her eyes. She focused on them for the first time, and bit back a gasp. Coiling and flecking off of Yang’s hair and shoulders were several strands of...her aura? Fire? Blake had no idea, she’d never seen anything like it. She was tempted to reach out and touch the tendrils of warm spun gold, but it didn’t seem like anyone else could see them, and honestly she probably should’ve stopped staring at them so obviously. 

 

But there was something about the embers, the way they curled against Yang’s cheeks and brought out the lilac of her eyes, lighting up the sunshine yellow of her hair… The pull to her partner was steadily growing and Blake had never wished to be an artist before, but the impulse to paint her was suddenly the most important thing in the world. 

 

And Yang was staring at her too, with the lines crinkled near her eyes and a confused dimpled smile on her face. Blake nearly kissed her then and there, but flecks of white that started to filter into her peripherals pulled her reluctantly from the urge. She flicked an ear up, the sound of faint chirping carrying across the tundra.

 

Just past the lip of the quarry, a whirlwind of snow had kicked up into a vortex. Distant at first, black and gray snow mixing with the pure white shapes weaving in and out. Ruby’s voice petered down to a mumble as she too became distracted by it. Yang tensed beside her and Blake felt her exhaustion as an extension of her own. 

 

Nevertheless, Ruby and Nora staggered to their feet, Ruby’s scythe unfolding into its sniper form. The strange vortex moved across in a cloud of howling snow, skimming closer and closer with each second that passed. Two hundred feet,  a hundred, then fifty feet away. The noises grew louder, and Ruby aimed down her scope with shaking hands. 

 

Blake readied her weary body to be pushed into battle once more - only for Ruby to wave in her face.

 

“Wait! Stand down,” Her silver eyes were bright with relief, a smile breaking across her face. “They’re a friend!”

 

The snowstorm died down to a low moan, which then split down the middle and revealed the shapes to be birds made of bright white snow. The chirping faded to light tweets as a woman stepped out of the maelstrom, her pristine blue and white uniform ruffled but otherwise intact. Famed by the blinding birds and gray clouds of snow, the woman’s icy blue stare scanned critically over their wearied group. 

 

Weiss’ gasp could have been a gunshot in a library for all Blake knew. It must have hurt her throat going down at such a speed. 

 

“W..Winter.” Weiss whispered, hastily climbing to her feet and wobbling on her shoes.

 

The woman’s gaze immediately corrected itself to Weiss, and Blake felt the tension rise threefold. She saw no discernible change in Winter’s expression, but she was convinced she could feel the concern radiating off of her. The birds disappeared in a gust of frost, and Winter took a single step out of her perfect march. Her hands rose halfway before redirecting themselves to the small of her back. She stood at perfect attention, though her mouth was pulled into an impressive scowl. 

 

“What. Are you doing here, sister?” Winter said flatly. 

 

Weiss moved through their group as if she hadn’t heard her, her expression blank and lost.

 

Winter continued stiffly, “This is no place for an unlicensed Huntress to be, you could have gotten killed-”

 

Her breath was knocked from her lungs as Weiss lunged into a vice-like hug. She buried her face into Winter’s shoulder, her own shoulders shaking ever so slightly. Blake picked up the conversation unintentionally, both sets of ears twitching.

 

“I’m so glad you’re okay.” Weiss whimpered, ignoring the cardboard stiffness of her older sister. “I was so scared when you didn’t come back for your ship, I -”

 

Winter’s jaw clenched. She managed to resist for maybe ten more seconds before she caved and her stiffness melted into an equally tight hug. Blake’s ears flicked back as Winter murmured in Weiss’ ear, feeling a lot like she was intruding on something private. 

 

She instead looked to the rest of their group, the relieved sigh shared through all of them. Nora had sat back between Jaune and Ren, weak sparks arcing between her spread out fingers. Ruby decided to sit with Blake and Yang, leaning into Yang’s side with a warm smile.

 

“Do you think Winter will be mad that we flew her ship?” Ruby asked out of the blue, keeping her voice down. 

 

Blake shrugged, “You’d know better than us. This is the first time I’ve met her.”

 

“Same.” Yang sighed, keeping an eye on the Schneeblings. “She seems kinda…”

 

“Stiff?” Blake suggested.

 

“Not the adjective I was going for, but sure.”

 

“She’s really nice when you get to know her!” Ruby protested quietly.

 

Yang and Blake both raised their eyebrows at her, and the leader shrunk back sheepishly. “...Okay so I don’t know her all that well, personally. She called me ‘appropriately underwhelming’ the first time we met, which now that I’ve looked in a dictionary, may not have been as nice as I thought it was. But! She really, really cares about Weiss. Like a lot.”

 

Yang rolled her eyes fondly. “And caring about Weiss goes a long way in your book, we know Rubes.”

 

“It’s not my fault I think Weiss deserves people that care about her!” Ruby grumbled, crossing her arms and pouting. 

 

Blake laughed softly, reaching over and ruffling Ruby’s sweat and cold stiffened hair, making it stick out on the sides. “We all want that, Ruby. You’re just… a little aggressive with your affection compared to us.”

 

Ruby fixated the two of them with wide, innocent silver eyes. “But I’m just copying what you guys do with each other. Isn’t that the way you’re supposed to do it?”

 

Blake nearly choked on her spit, coughing quietly as her face grew redder than a tomato. Yang wasn’t faring much better. A piece of her hair had caught fire and was licking its way up her back, her mouth working open and shut like a fish. Blake hastily patted out the flames, trying to stifle the urge to explain too much of why hers and Yang’s version of affection was supposed to be different. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to finish that conversation without wanting to die. Even now it was a struggle.

 

“Uh, well um,” Yang stammered out, eyes flicking to Blake’s in a clear sign of ‘oh gods please help me’.

 

Mercifully, Weiss and Winter finished speaking at that moment, Winter’s throat clearing sharply to gain their attention. Blake was only too happy to give it. Anything to avoid that oncoming trainwreck of a conversation. Though in doing so, she missed the sly little grin that disappeared from Ruby’s face. 

 

“I’ve never met some of you, so I suppose introductions are in order.” Winter said robotically. Weiss practically hummed at her side, smiling wider than Blake had seen in a while. “I am Winter Schnee of the Atlas Special Operatives division. As you are all friends with my sister… Winter will do just fine.”

 

Through the tired chorus of greetings that definitely lacked their usual luster, Ruby popped up from her seat against Yang, somehow smiling her megawatt grin and saying cheerfully. “It’s good to see you again, Winter!”

 

The older Schnee glared down her nose at the girl, and Blake could have sworn she saw her lips twitch into a reluctant smile before it vanished. Winter inclined her head ever so slightly. “Ruby Rose. I can’t say these circumstances are for...pleasant conversation.” She scowled. “As you can see, we were quite busy today.”

 

“As you can see, so were we.” Weiss said, her voice strong as she gestured to the skull still lying at the lip of the quarry. 

 

Winter gave an affirming nod, eyeing the skull with distaste befitting of her upbringing. Blake still didn’t like the ‘holier-than-thou’ attitude that seemed ingrained into the Schnee DNA - even if Winter’s seemed to fit her like a glove with her job and all. 

 

“I’ll have a team take that skull back to our research labs.” Winter said firmly, looking over their group as if pinpointing their weaknesses. She earned a few points in Blake’s book as she didn’t even look twice at her cat ears, taking them in stride. “For the time being, I believe you all have suffered enough for one day.”

 

“What do you mean?” Jaune asked, slowly rising to his feet with the help of his sword. Oscar, Ren, and Nora all stood behind him to support his tall, drained stature.

 

“Winter and I have dinner plans tonight,” Weiss said calmly. “It’d only make sense to stay with her until then.”

 

Ruby’s jaw dropped a little and she bounced on her toes. “You mean we get to see your house??”

 

“No, you will not be staying in my quarters. I wouldn’t be able to fit all of you anyhow.” Winter rolled her eyes. “No, I’m taking you to the Academy. Weiss has told me of...some of your situation. I can grant you sleeping quarters, new clothes, and weapon upgrades as new recruits. We can discuss your next moves after you’ve all had an adequate moment to sleep and freshen up.”

 

“Recruits..?” Oscar looked at Ruby with wide eyes, as if looking for an explanation, though she clearly had none.

 

Winter merely nodded, her heels clicking together in a solid, silent salute.

 

“It’s in your best interest to do so for now. You may be skilled enough to pass the licensing exam, but there is still much you can learn, and you’ll have free lodging while you stay. You’re not being forced into becoming students. You’re free to leave at any time. However, that is the safest place I can give you at the moment.”

 

Weiss gave an uneasy look to them, her face paler than usual. “...We don’t really have a better option.”

 

Jaune and Ruby exchanged a silent conversation, their expressions impassive for the most part. They both glanced at their teams, and Blake felt distinctly out of body as she watched Ruby acquiesce with a single nod.

 

“...Okay.” She said. “Just for now. Until we know what to do next. Not having to pay for anything would be really nice.”

 

Winter released a slow breath, almost like a sigh. Blake could feel the fur on her ears standing on end, one of her sharper canines chewing the inside of her lip anxiously.

 

"Then allow me to be the first to say," Winter said, maneuvering around them to reach her ship, the tassels waving slow in the stale wind like flags of war. She turned to them, not a smile to be seen and eyes as cold as the ground they stood upon. 

 

"Welcome to Atlas Academy."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also I have a new tumblr, if you want to scream at me about the newest chapter or life in general, feel free to hit me up @ddullahan. I'd love to hear from y'all :>
> 
> ALSO also - if you guys like poems and stuff, I write a lot of poetry on my kofi here: https://ko-fi.com/ddullahan
> 
> I was thinking about expanding it to themes, but it's pretty messy for now, sorry ><


	17. the shining light will sink in darkness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys your comments are so Kind??? Even 16 chapters later, I can't believe how sweet all of you are. Thank you so much for the well wishes and compliments, I greatly appreciate them T.T
> 
> So while I have a rough idea of where to go from here, I'm still kind of flying by the seat of my pants. This story has changed so much from my original outline, I'm kinda just letting the characters go wild and seeing where it goes xD
> 
> As always, comments and kudos are rewarded with blood sacrifices <3 Don't forget to love each other, and let me know what you think of this chapter, I actually love it to pieces :D

* * *

Ruby didn't remember much of the flight into the city. She didn't even know how exhausted she was until her butt hit the seat of the plane and she slumped against the window. Listening to Winter's snark and pomposity as if through a heavy glass wall. 

 

It was about mid-afternoon by now, overcast with low-hanging clouds stained a dark, inky gray. Ruby could make out the gradient of smog to cloud as the ship jolted and shuddered its way skyward. They broke free of cloud cover, bits of fluff clinging to the wings as it arched up and above the zooming trolley-lines and glinting metropolis below. 

 

Ruby blinked at the window, and awoke in a bunk bed of some kind, judging by the incredibly low ceiling. It was either bunk beds, or she'd become a giant in her sleep.

 

The grayish-blue curtains were drawn over steel gray walls, only a sliver of moonlight streaking from the gap like iridescent paint on the floor. Her entire body ached in a way she sorely hoped she'd never feel again, but on some level she knew it was bound to be repeated. Her body rolled, laying on her side with a groan. The bones of her corset dug into her ribs and she rolled all the way off the bed, falling to the floor with an anti‐climactic _whumf_.

 

"You look well-rested." 

 

Ruby groaned into the cold blue floors, her body throbbing like one big sore muscle.

 

"C'mon stinky, you're gonna smudge the floor with your stale face sweat." Strong arms wrapped under her armpits and lifted her like she weighed nothing, setting her on her feet.

 

Ruby immediately sunk into the body that carried her, smushing her face into a cloud of fresh pine and distant campfires, the strands still slightly damp from a shower. Yang's soft laughter spread warmth to her toes, and Ruby just buried herself in the safety and security of her sister. Eyes closed, breathing soft. Yang’s strong pulse tapping against her cheek. Solidly coiling her arms around her shoulders, anchoring her to the floor. Ruby almost fell back asleep then and there.

 

"Seriously though, you smell _so_ bad Ruby." Yang said, though her voice was gently teasing as she leaned away with a wrinkled nose. 

 

"Downwind it isn't so bad," Blake teased, slipping out of the shadows with a smile. Her long black hair had been brushed and swept away from her, cascading down her back and bleeding into the shadows as if it belonged there. 

 

"Go take a shower," Yang said with an eye roll, ushering her toward a metallic sliding door.

 

Ruby merely nodded, her vision still a little hazy as she stumbled past a second set of bunk beds slotted into the wall. Mentally cataloguing how utterly _awesome_ this blank room was to have bunk beds for Awake Ruby to process later, she slunk her way into the bathroom. Residual humidity from Yang’s shower immediately latched onto her body, soaking through her clothes and turning her skin several shades darker with sticky grime. 

 

A mirror that stretched all along the right wall invited her to take a look at her undoubtedly roughened state, but she refused. Head held down, belt buckles and empty metal cartridges clinking as she stripped down to nothing. She slipped into the shower and turned the dial, a pleasant and _cold_ spray of water rumbling up through the pipes. 

 

Ruby hissed out a breath between her teeth, before her aching muscles relaxed under the temperature. She tilted her head back, breathing out slow as the water at her feet turned from brown and red to clear and clean. Showers were good reset points, Ruby considered, stealing some of her sister’s shampoo and conditioner. A place to clear the mind, letting the water wash away the day. She tilted her head back into the spray, holding her breath.

 

Wash away the day.

 

Yang and Nora rag-dolled into a ship. Yang's dented knuckles straining towards the sky from a hole in the ground. Blake nearly swallowed by the horror of the quarry. Trains crashing, citizens screaming, screaming, screaming. Weiss’ snow white eyelashes stained with black ink. Shards of crystal blue flooded with black veins.

 

She was almost too slow. She couldn't help them all at once. What-ifs flashing through her head like a slideshow manned by a toddler, manic and disorganized.

 

Wash it away, wash it away. 

 

Ruby scrubbed herself till her aura kicked in to heal the rawness of her skin, hurrying the rest of her shower when the water started to feel like icy nails pelting against her shoulders.

 

Clothes had been left on the counter for her, she hadn’t even heard someone come in. A soft t-shirt and sweatpants of white and gray, along with, mercifully, new underwear. She emerged from the bathroom in a cloud of steam, breathing a bit shallow as she was greeted by Yang and Blake smiling at her from across the room. They were seated on the second lower bunk, heads bowed together until she entered. 

 

"Feel better?" Yang asked with a teasing lilt. 

 

Ruby forced a smile. "Much."

 

She glanced around the dark room, feeling Weiss' absence like a dip in the road, her stomach plummeting. "..Where's Weiss?"

 

"Out with her sister." Blake said, "She'll be back in like an hour or so."

 

“Oh…” Ruby ducked her head a little as she fiddled with the hem of her t-shirt. Worry clawed its way through her heart, her teeth catching on her lower lip. 

 

“She’s okay.” Blake reassured. “She’s with Winter.”

 

“I-I know!” Ruby backed up a bit, needing something to do with her hands. She traipsed back to the bathroom, gathering her admittedly smelly clothes from the floor, wincing at the wet brown mark they left behind. “I just - I wanted to check on her before she left. But sleep is good! I definitely needed a nap after… all of that."

 

"We all crashed when we got here." Yang sighed. "That fight was brutal."

 

"And everyone else?"

 

"Room down the hall, dogpiled and passed the fuck out. Uncle Qrow and Maria aren't happy about us being here, but they said they'd be fine hotel hopping in the outer cities." 

 

The brawler laid out on the bed and stretched till her wrists hit the wall, the cotton shirt riding up above her belly button. Both Blake and Yang were dressed in the same casual clothes as Ruby, though Yang had rolled the short sleeves up to her shoulders. The metal of Yang's right hand seemed to stutter and groan as she straightened it out, the crushed knuckles preventing her fingers from unfurling fully. 

 

Ruby gave it a quick glance as she rejoined them, noting which fingers were unmoving, mentally drawing a schematic to understand what might need adjustments. She then sifted through the pouches of her combat belt, sighing in relief at the faint blue glow from underneath one of the flaps. Fingers brushed against the blue glass before pocketing the entire pouch. 

 

She took her weapon tuning tools from the back pouch, tossing her gross clothes in a corner and heading over to Yang. She sat on her sister's other side, Blake's confused eyebrow prompting her to return it with a smile.

 

"Let me see what I can do for your arm." Ruby said, jingling her tools over Yang's nose. She was pushed away with a snort, a heavy hiss of released pressure following almost immediately. 

 

The yellow arm landed in her lap, detached with a carelessness that surprised her. 

 

"Winter said our first order of business would be to fix our weapons tomorrow." Yang said nonchalantly, rolling on her side towards Blake and reaching out to twirl one of her black locks between her fingers. "But if you wanna take a look at it, go for it."

 

Ruby pointedly ignored the way Blake stiffened across from her, gold eyes pinging from Yang to Ruby and back. 

 

A bit of her energy filtered back into her limbs, Ruby's face stretching into a wide grin. She eagerly popped off the panel over the forearm and got to work. The space grew quiet, only broken by tools clinking as the three of them sat together on a single bunk. 

 

The leader kept her head down, using a scroll flashlight lit between her teeth to see every gear and wire that made up her sister's arm. She marveled at the intricacy, her tools moving with the precision of surgery. She found several bent wires, several gears shattered into pieces, and even a black feather caught under the knuckle plate. As the hour dripped past, Yang shifted and dropped her head in Blake's lap, cheek smushed against her thigh. The faunus in question had lost the ability to care, already fading in and out of sleep while sitting up. So sucked into her task, Ruby didn't notice them at all. Nor did she hear the door slide open. But she definitely recognized the click of heels.

 

She glanced up instinctively, and her heart surprised her with a stuttering skip.

 

Weiss seemed to be wearing one of Winter's old uniforms. It was baggy in certain areas, the sleeves of the ornate white coat pushed up to her forearms, hanging long and loose around her frame and fluttering about her ankles. Her clean hair was wrapped up in a loose bun, a few strands braided along the sides of her head and bangs hanging loose in her exhausted eyes. There was a weight to her appearance, a wrongness that seemed to make Ruby's tongue stick to the roof of her mouth and accidentally bend one of her tools in her hand. She didn't understand the odd heat under her collar, or the silent, grateful prayer to the dark for covering how flushed her cheeks were.

 

The strangled sound she released instead of a greeting, however, startled them both.

 

Weiss jumped nearly a foot while Ruby quickly hissed out apologies. Weiss whipped towards her, mouth opening for a clear beratement - but a gust of rose petals silenced her. Along with the hands pressed against her mouth.

 

They stilled, neither of them moving for fear of awakening their team members, staring at each other with wide, wide eyes. A beat passed, then two. Yang let out a quiet snore.

 

The pair relaxed minutely, though it dawned on Ruby that she was so close to Weiss, she could count every one of her snowy eyelashes. They fluttered against the side of Ruby's hands, goosebumps erupting along her forearms suddenly.

 

She really had no idea that Weiss was so pretty up close. It felt a little like she'd discovered something she wasn't supposed to. Something warmer than shame slithered down her spine, coiling in her muscles and settling in her joints. Had Weiss' eyes always been the color of the deepest parts of the ocean? She'd always thought they were as pale as the girl herself, but the darker ring of indigo around her pupils spoke otherwise.

 

Was there a word for when you wanted to pick apart every color, every shade you can find in your friend's eyes? She'd never wanted time to freeze than in that moment; with that single streak of moonlight crossing over Weiss' scarred eye and filling it with stardust.

 

"...Ruby you can move your hands now." Weiss said bluntly.

 

The silver-eyed girl blinked, realising their position and quickly snatching her hands back. An anxious laugh bubbled up in her throat, but she bit it back for fear of sounding hysterical - or y'know, waking up Yang and Blake.

 

"Sorry." She winced. "Uh...welcome back?"

 

Weiss took a slight step back, giving her an odd look. Ruby plastered a grin onto her face, despite the fact that her heart was trying to leap right out of her chest. She hoped it wasn't obvious how breathless she was.

 

But Weiss didn't seem to notice, straightening up and smoothing out the high collared shirt and jewel wrapped around her throat. 

 

"Thank you," She said quietly.

 

It was odd to see her move around in uniform. She didn't have the same rigid control that Winter exuded on a daily basis. She was softer at the edges, which softened Ruby in return.

 

"How was dinner?" Ruby asked, also dropping her voice to a murmur. 

 

It was the most intimate conversation they'd had since the meeting the day before. Ruby felt like their time in the hotel room was from an entirely different realm of existence, and she ached for the ease of it. She ached for the easy closeness her and Weiss had shared, and she felt a bit ridiculous because she's only been a day without it. 

 

A day filled with horror and fear, but a day nonetheless. 

 

Already Weiss was pulling away from her, shrinking under her gaze like there was something to be ashamed of. It was frustrating. It was heartbreaking. Ruby wanted to take her head in her hands and shake her until she started talking about what was wrong. That black substance had been completely cleaned away, leaving just the flinch of Weiss' body to show that it was still present. Lingering, like a murderer in the trees.

 

"It was fine," Weiss said, tucking an invisible strand of hair behind her ear. "She had a lot of questions, and I couldn't give her many answers without you guys present. I wouldn't even know how to begin telling her about Salem."

 

"Thank you for waiting to tell her that." Ruby replied, folding her hands behind her back to resist the temptation to reach out to her partner. "Did you… do you feel better, after talking to her? I know you were struggling with that a lot today."

 

Weiss shrunk a bit more into herself, her gaze snapping to the left. "...Yeah." She forced a small smile. "Much better. I'm glad she's okay, despite all the craziness."

 

Ruby could only nod, swallowing the bitterness that Weiss had just lied to her. She forced out a hollowed whisper of, "Good," and tried to decide if she should confront her about the black stuff now.

 

But Weiss didn't seem to be so comfortable with their conversation anymore. She shifted anxiously, her chin rising and tilting as if something caught her attention. 

 

"Weiss, are you -"

 

"I'm really tired, Ruby." She said quickly, shedding her coat. In a blink, Weiss had gathered a final set of the same white t-shirt and sweatpants from the bunk above Ruby's and clicked her way to the bathroom. "Do you want to trade me for the bottom bunk?"

 

"Uh, sure." Ruby said numbly, her hands falling loose at her sides.

 

Before Weiss could reach the bathroom though, Ruby came to her senses and strode over quickly, gently catching her upper arm. The corded, lithe muscles flexed under her touch, and Ruby had to unstick her tongue from the roof of her mouth.

 

"Are you sure you're okay?" She blurted out, mind racing. "It's okay if you're not. I just, I want you to know that."

 

Weiss didn't meet her eyes, and Ruby's stomach yawned, wide and dark and _lonely_.

 

"..I'm fine." She said, hollow and distant.

 

She extracted herself from Ruby's grip and gave her an unseeing nod, dissolving into the bathroom. Leaving Ruby alone in the dark with just her thoughts for company.

 

She stared at the door. The shuffling behind it should have made her feel less alone, but it only reminded her of the distance that had taken over their conversations. Her fingertips grazed the cold metal of the door, biting back the heat behind her eyes.

 

She should've taken a longer shower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SIDENOTE GUYS I got a house!!!! Like right after I posted the 16th chapter and made that long-ass message, my roommates got a call that we were approved for a house in Bend, Oregon!!! So thank you for putting your good vibes out in the world - I like to think it came out to some good in the karmic universe :>


	18. can't find myself

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys guys guys guys someone drew FANART and I have ASCENDED - PLEASE PLEASE follow @toasttiiee on tumblr and give them the love they deserve!! 
> 
> https://toasttiiee.tumblr.com/post/616654865351966720/hi-please-read-ddullahan-s-fanfic-atlas
> 
> On a calmer note, hi everyone! I banged this out from 200 words to like 3k in one night and I am vibrating into another plane cause I'm like 12 days from moving out of Hell Itself during a pandemic! How're you guys doin?? (Honestly every time y'all give me comments or even talk about your days it gives me life, I'm happy to listen/read about your lives!! People are so interesting!!!)
> 
> As always, my eternal love and devotion to everyone who's read and given kudos or commented on AS so far. I appreciate your guy's support so very much T.T It makes me so emotional - which brings us to a nice segue into Weiss' chapter theme today! 
> 
> Don't forget to love each other, and kindness is the world's greatest weapon, even in these crazy times. Hang in there everybody, we'll find our way <3

* * *

It was strange to think that they’d arrived in Atlas only a day ago. What happened in the town whose name she couldn’t even remember felt like it’d happened to an entirely different person. 

 

While the rest of the world seemed to ignore such troubles outside the bigger city; Atlas Academy was abuzz with whispers of new students, and the chaos of the outskirts. Weiss kept her head high as they walked through the halls, dirty and unkempt as they were. Every student she passed the murmurs grew louder, and she would've snapped at them if they didn't need to get Ruby into a bed. 

 

Yang was confident that she was just tired, and Blake echoed the sentiment - but Weiss couldn't shake the fear in her heart. To see Ruby limp and unconscious in Yang’s arms brought forth a time when something much worse had occurred. When a bloodied Qrow appeared at the base of Beacon tower with Ruby curled in his arms, her arm swinging loose from her shoulder like the rest of her was supposed to be covered in white cloth. The whispers seemed to grow after their footsteps.

 

Mercifully, they made it to the room without Weiss’ temper flaring outside her steely indigo glare. As soon as Ruby was safely set in the lower bunk, Weiss curled her aching body into the upper bunk and spent the rest of the afternoon trying to sleep, with little success. It was weird being on the top bunk.

 

As the windows tinted pink and silvery towers bled with the sky's gold, Winter arrived at their door with a brisk knock, carrying some of her old clothes rolled up under her arm. 

 

Weiss melted off the top bunk, landing on her toes so as not to disturb her teammate’s murmuring conversation. She should’ve known Winter would have a backup plan for public decorum.

 

“I sent some recruits to that hotel you spoke of.” Winter said as Weiss approached. “Your belongings should be here shortly, should they prove to be competent.”

 

Weiss attempted a small smile, the muscles of her face struggling against exhaustion and gravity. 

 

“Thank you,” She said softly, glancing at her team. The sight of Yang and Blake passed out in their bunks and Ruby’s soft hiccuping snores had a warmth rising in her chest, helping to beat the exhaustion back. Her smile felt a bit fonder, a bit easier to maintain. “I’m sure they’ll appreciate it.”

 

Winter softened her posture, if only minutely. “Well. Think of it as a thank you for your help today.” She raised a white eyebrow. “Though I _would_ like to know how you and your...squadron of misfits… swept into Atlas borders while we’re in lockdown.”

 

Weiss forced a laugh, though it sounded more like a cough as she pulled it from her chest. “I believe that’s a conversation best reserved for dinner.”

 

“Then you’d best clean up and get dressed, sister.” Winter said wryly, holding out the bundle of clothes.

 

Weiss took them sheepishly, turning and making a beeline for the bathroom. She took a wet cloth and wiped off most of the grime from her skin and hair, braiding a few pieces of hair before giving up and wrapping it all up in a thick bun, too exhausted to do more. Mechanically, she tugged on clothes that were a tad too big in the chest, though she discovered with a minor heart attack that her shoulders fit a little too snugly in the uniform jacket. She had to be careful not to pull forward too fast or it’d rip. Her combat dress had certainly seen better days, she thought idly as she picked it up and folded it delicately on the counter. Her fingers drifted along the rips in the sheer blue sleeves, black droplets staining the fabric along the body. 

 

She shook away the fog in her head and rejoined her sister. Weiss gave one last glance to her team before they left, clinging to the warmth of their presence for as long as possible. When Winter gave a click of her tongue however, she tore herself from the doorway and let it slide shut with finality. 

 

Weiss had never considered herself to be dependant on others. She'd always made sure she could take care of herself, and pull her own weight. Yes, Weiss loved her friends, but she'd never had to depend on their presence to live functionally. She just preferred them with her, than without. 

 

So imagine her surprise, when she felt the presence of something pressing anxiously against her ribs as her team disappeared behind the door. 

 

It was odd, how the dread that encapsulated her every muscle seemed to grow with each step away from the room. Like something would happen to them without her there. Or maybe something was happening to her.

 

It was a heart-pounding struggle to pay attention as Weiss and her sister boarded a tram heading down into the heart of the city. Winter, eagle-eyed as ever, noticed her distraction early on.

 

“Weiss.” Winter called for the third time, redirecting her to a blue-tinted building with a towering entryway of coiling gothic design. "Are you listening to me?"

 

She snapped out of her confused fog, absorbing the building’s exterior in startled, sudden detail. She vaguely remembered Winter mentioning it as a peace-driven effort to bring color and creativity back. 

 

"This was made after the war, engineered by a Mantle artist, and an Atlas architect." Winter said with all the thrill of a textbook, though there was a tint of fondness in her voice. "You always begged Father to walk down this street to see it."

 

The edges of the skyscraper were garnished with wave-like metal grooves, smoothed to look like a polished sea storm in motion. The waves of layered metal swept down the four corners and grew in complexity towards the base, creating a strange contrast of sharp edges and polished chaos. Like a lighthouse being swallowed by the sea. In a distant pull of shame, she realized that Winter had brought her to appreciate the architecture, and Weiss hadn’t even been paying attention. She didn’t even remember when they’d entered the artistic district to begin with, how much conversation did she miss?

 

Weiss could barely muster the strength to look her sister in the eye. “I’m sorry, Winter. I’m… I wasn’t paying attention. I’ll be better.”  
  


“Better?” Winter frowned. “When did I ever say you were subpar?”

 

Weiss hesitated, mouth working with no words formed. 

 

“You do not need to be _better_ if you have not lacked anything to begin with. You are not the type to apologise for meaningless trivialities, Weiss, and you have been... _off,_ all night.”

 

The unspoken question lingered between them like a vacuum. The fog lingering at the edges of her mind became sticky, her rational thoughts stuck fast to the mire. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t pull them free.

 

“I-I’m fine, Winter. I just - is there a bathroom nearby? I think I’m feeling a little sick.” Weiss said in a rush, a cold sweat building at the base of her neck and behind her jaw. Her mouth felt thick with saliva and she could feel her knees start to tremble minutely. 

 

"There is one inside, but -"

 

Weiss dipped past and hurried inside, making a beeline for the bathroom. As soon as the door slid shut with a whisper, she threw a gravity glyph at it to keep it locked and gripped the edges of the nearest sink.

 

Her tongue felt swollen in her mouth and a desperate heat began to build in the back of her eyes. Emotions sloughed through her body, thick and viscous to where she felt everything to slowly. Her fingers shook, hooked with nails scraping against the silvery metal basin.

 

Why was everything _metal?_ Why did everything in Atlas remind her of the reason why she left? Why was she even _here??_ She could just up and leave the same way they got in, no one would look twice at a Huntress leaving on a mission. She could come up with a fake Huntress license - no, they'd impose the lockdown. She could take her sister's and wrap her hair up, she was already wearing a partial uniform, it would be easy to pass herself off as Winter and leave for Vacuo or even back to Haven literally anywhere but Atlas -

 

 _No._  

 

"That's not right," Weiss hissed, suddenly finding herself out of breath and hunched over the sink. "That's not me. Those aren't my thoughts. Those aren't my thoughts."

 

She blinked hard. In the corner of her eye, her pale hands held spiderwebs of black veins. They crawled up each individual digit, wrapped around her wrist and pulsed along her exposed forearms. She tilted her head up, lips parted in a choking gasp at the sight of her eyes, completely encompassed by black liquid and veins slithering across her temples.

 

The image was enough to kick her free from the fog. Her hands steadied, the veins sinking into her body the way an aligator dips below a surface of water. Weiss watched with a morbid fascination as the black drained into her pupils, and the blue shone clear like it was never there. 

 

Perhaps that was the most disturbing part of it all, because she looked normal now. She looked like she'd always been.

 

But the darkness was still there. Lurking under her skin. Waiting for her own weakness. Her own doubt and misery. 

 

The grimm are attracted to negativity. This corruption was no different.

 

Her breath fogged up the mirror, and the gleam from the dust lamps reminded her of warm silver light.

 

She swallowed hard, and came to a decision. 

 

She didn’t want to lose herself to the evil encroaching on her soul. Weiss had fought too long and hard to escape from the greedy glutches of conformity, only to succumb to this. No.

 

A surge of stubbornness swept through her then, a warmth that manifested in her palms and crackled along the edges of her recovered aura. She clenched her jaw, glaring at herself. She could fight this. Just as she'd fought everything else that tried to make her into something she wasn't. 

 

Then the door rattled, startling her into releasing the glyph. It flung open so fast it nearly took off Winter's nose, and a brief pulse of fight or flight swept through her like a tornado. It doused the flames of her resolve, it made her dizzy and so unstable she had to grip the sink to stay on her feet.

 

But the fog didn't rise this time. She held onto herself for dear life, and waited for her pulse to calm down. She thought of silver light. 

 

Breathing became a bit easier.

 

"What in Remnant were you doing?" Winter asked with such befuddlement, Weiss almost found it funny.

 

"Fixing my clothes. The pants were ah… sliding a bit." Weiss said, recovering with a lie.

 

Winter gave her an odd look, to which Weiss corrected her posture and lifted her chin. "We have differing body types, Winter. I'm not twelve anymore."

 

Winter rolled her eyes, clearly biting back a comment with militaristic ease. "Well, if you're quite finished sassing me, our reservation is in ten minutes."

 

Weiss took a deep, shaking breath. Her hands clenched at her sides, but she was doing it. The heinous monster was quieted, the clock was ticking slower. She could do this.

 

By the end of the night, Weiss hadn’t told Winter about the shadows crawling through her bones.

 

She remained rather quiet throughout dinner, though it was nice to catch up with her sister after such a stressful day. They'd talked of Haven, and the trip to Argos. Weiss skipped past the fact that she'd been impaled, like every other time it was brought up. She didn't remember it, she didn't worry about it. Even if the thick scar on her waist still surprised her in the mirror.

 

It was a beautiful place, vaulted ceilings and pillars of sterile blue at each corner. The sea theme had faded the further they got to the top, more gothic archways and flying buttresses to combat the sleek metal textures. The floor itself was massive, and in a true echo of Schnee privilege, they were right next to a window on the top floor of not exactly the tallest tower in Atlas, but still high enough to achieve a decent view of the tundras and trolley lines. She ate better that night than she had in nearly six months, but it hardly registered with her. She was kind of distracted. 

 

Now that she was aware and knew (tentatively) how to control the negative flares, there was still something weird about it all.

 

She kept hearing whispers. It was never a full sentence, and reminded her vaguely of someone screaming across a forest. Their voice didn't carry, but you knew there had been a presence by the flock of birds taking flight.

 

She wondered if she could only hear words if she was having an episode. Like what she'd experienced with Yang.

 

It was easier to tune them out once she focused on her sister, and their conversation shifted towards training schedules. 

 

"I doubt we can stay at the Academy for long." Weiss said, frowning. In the lull, she sensed a perfect opportunity, jumping on the question. "What does Ironwood think about all of this?"

 

And for the first time all night, Winter looked uneasy.

 

"...General Ironwood is… dealing with much bigger matters." 

 

Weiss leaned forward incredulously. "Matters bigger than the hundreds of airships patrolling above the city?"

 

Winter's posture stiffened. She could've been a statue. Weiss saw their waiter take two steps in their direction and then immediately take a one-eighty.

 

"There is...a correlation. That's all I can say on the matter." Winter shot her a glare that was clearly meant to end that particular conversation. "In the meantime, I have been placed in charge of recruiting. You and your...misfits, are welcome for as long as you need."

 

Well, she couldn't deny they were definitely a little raggedy after everything. Misfits definitely wasn't the worst thing they'd been called.

 

"Won't you get in trouble for favoritism?" Weiss asked numbly, a little shocked that she was actually getting so much from her usually tight-lipped sister.

 

Winter scoffed. "The eight of you managed to kill a grimm older than Solitas without any casualties, and none of you are past the age of a third year student. Apparently the farm boy alone is _fourteen._ As a special operative of the Atlas Military, and licensed Huntress, I'd be an imbecile _not_ to recruit you. The fact that you're my sister is irrelevant."

 

Weiss had to bite her tongue to stem the surge of disappointment writhing unhappily in her gut - but a shift in Winter's demeanor paused it before things got out of hand.

 

She'd started tapping the table with her fingertip, unable to look Weiss in the eye. The moments between were excruciating.

 

"...Though I will admit." Winter said finally, pursing her lips. "It is...nice… to find myself in a position to help you." 

 

Speechless, Weiss sat back in her seat.

 

Winter's steel returned to her spine only moments later, her throat clearing as she looked over her shoulder. "Where is our waiter? I asked for breadsticks twenty minutes ago."

 

As she glared the poor boy into action from across the room, Weiss couldn't help but smile a little. 

 

She'd missed Winter, too.

 

The journey back to the barracks was easier. Weiss felt lighter than when she'd left, and her crazy feelings were happy to return to her safe space. She thanked her sister for dinner, hugged her good night. Winter hugged like an ironing board, but Weiss couldn't ask for a perfect hug every time.

 

All in all, she entered the room in much better spirits.

 

And then something went wrong. 

 

There were many emotions to choose from in any situation. She was used to reigning in the worst of them.

 

But this emotion was just as strange as the first time she'd felt it. A skip in her chest, a burning in her ears and cheeks. Ruby's weight against her sent a strange heat flushing in places she really wasn't comfortable with and it all turned so bad so fast, she shut down.

 

It was only when her back hit the bathroom door that she could finally breathe through the lump of heart in her throat. As the events came to hit her fully, her heart sunk from the throat to her toes, and bottomed out, probably on its way to Mantle.

 

"...Shit" Weiss whispered to the ceiling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you like poems or just wanna see what else I'm doing when I'm not ascending to a new plane of existence, check out my ko-fi!  
> https://ko-fi.com/ddullahan
> 
> And if you wanna scream at me or see some doodles I do when the moon hits just right, you can look at my tumblr too!  
> https://ddullahan.tumblr.com/


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